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CHRISTIAN  HEALING 


CHRISTIAN  HEALING 

THE  SCIENCE  OF  BEING 


CHARLES  FILLMORE 


TENTH    EDITION 


UNITY  SCHOOL  OF  CHRISTIANITY 

KANSAS  CITY,  Mo. 

1922 


PREFACE 

These  are  not  simply  lectures;  they  are, 
rather,  lessons.  They  are  not  to  be  merely 
read;  they  are  to  be  studied  and  applied  as 
one  studies  and  applies  mathematical  rules. 

When  a  suggestion  is  made  to  "/ioW  a 
thought"  or  to  affirm  or  deny  a  certain  prop- 
osition, the  student  should  stop  reading,  and, 
both  audibly  and  mentally,  do  as  bidden. 
This  will  set  us  new  thought  currents  in 
mind  and  body,  and  mafye  way  for  the  spir- 
itual illumination  which  will  follow  in  all 
who  are  faithful  to  these  instructions. 

The  statements  following  each  lesson 
should  be  used  for  mental  discipline.  Write 
these  statements  down,  and  apply  them  daily 
while  studying  the  lesson  to  which  they  cor- 
respond. Any  one  can  do  mind  healing  who 
will  use  the  simple  rules  of  denials  and  affir- 
mations here  set  forth.  If  you  wish  to  heal 
another,  hold  him  in  mind  and  mentally  re- 
peat the  denials  and  affirmations;  this  will 
raise  the  consciousness  to  spiritual  reality, 
where  all  healing  power  originates.  If  you 
wish  to  heal  yourself,  talk  *°  P°ur  mentality 
and  body  as  you  would  talk  to  a  patient. 


2031721 


CONTENTS 


LESSON   ONE 

The  True  Character  of  Being 9 

Statements  for  the  Realization  of  Divine  Mind 18 

LESSON  TWO 

Being's  Perfect  Idea 19 

Statements  for  the  Realization  of  the  Son  of  God 29 

LESSON  THREE 

Manifestation 30 

I  AM  Realizations 38 

LESSON  FOUR 

The  Formative  Power  of  Thought 39 

Affirmations  for  Right  Thinking 47 

LESSON   FIVE 

How  to  Control  Thought 48 

Cleansing  and  Purifying  Statements 57 

LESSON  SIX 

The  Word 58 

The  Power  of  Words 66 

LESSON  SEVEN 

Spirituality ;  or,  Prayer  and  Praise 68 

Living  Words  to  Quicken  Spirituality 77 

Establishing  the  Perfect  Substance 78 

LESSON  EIGHT 

Faith 79 

Faith  Affirmations  .  .  .87 


LESSON  NINE 

Imagination    "° 

Perfection  in  Form  Established 98 

LESSON   TEN 

Will  and  Understanding 99 

The  Establishment  of  Will  and  Understanding 1 08 

LESSON   ELEVEN 

Judgment  and  Justice 110 

Judgment  and  Justice  Statements 119 

LESSON  TWELVE 

Love 120 

Love  Demonstrated 1 29 

TALKS  ON  TRUTH 

How  Microbes  Are  Made 135 

The  I  AM  in  Its  Kingdom 148 

How  Shall  the  Dead  Be  Raised? 158 

The  Development  of  Divine  Love 1  70 

The  Ministry  of  the  Word 184 

Ye  Must  Be  Born  Again 192 

Obedience    205 

The  Church  of  Christ 217 

The  Lord's  Body 230 

The  Restoration  of  God's  Kingdom 237 

How  Mental  Healing  Is  Done 247 

Sample  Treatments 248 

Six  Days'  Treatment 251 

Index ..257 


THE  TRUE  CHARACTER  OF  BEING 

LESSON  ONE 

"There  is  a  spirit  in  man,  And  the  breath  of  the 
Almighty  giveth  them  understanding."  The  Sci- 
ence which  is  here  set  forth,  is  founded  upon  Spirit. 
It  does  not  conform  to  intellectual  standards,  but  it  is, 
nevertheless,  scientific.  The  facts  of  Spirit  are  of  a 
spiritual  character,  and,  when  understood  in  their 
right  relation,  they  are  orderly.  Orderliness  is  law, 
and  is  the  test  of  true  science. 

>?  The  lawful  truths  of  Spirit  are  more  scientific 
than  the  constantly  shifting  opinions  of  intellectual 
standards.  The  only  real  science  is  the  science  of 
Spirit. '  It  never  changes.  It  is  universally  accepted 
by  all  who  are  in  the  Spirit,  but  it  is  necessary  to  be 
"in  the  Spirit"  before  it  can  be  understood.  The 
mind  of  the  Spirit  must  become  active  in  those  who 
would  grasp  the  orderly  science  of  Being  which 
these  lessons  proclaim. 

3  It  is  not  absolutely  necessary  that  the  spiritual 
part  of  man's  nature  be  active  in  the  beginning  of  his 
study  of  this  science.  The  primal  object  of  the 
lessons  is  to  quicken  the  spiritual  realm  of  conscious- 
ness, and  bring  about  the  "inspiration  of  the  Al- 
mighty" that  gives  understanding, 
y  So  let  it  be  understood  that  we  are  teaching  the 
science  of  Spirit,  and  that  those  who  are  receptive 
will  be  inspired  to  spiritual  consciousness.  It  is 
not  a  difficult  matter  to  accomplish,  this  inspiration  of 


10 


Lesson  One 


the  Spirit.  We  are  all  inspired  by  the  Spirit  in  cer- 
tain states  of  consciousness.  The  understanding  of 
the  laws  governing  the  realm  of  Spirit  will  make  it 
possible  to  attain  this  consciousness  and  receive  this 
inspiration  whenever  the  requirements  are  met. 

£  The  starting  point  in  spiritual  realization  is  a 
right  understanding  of  that  One  designated  as  the 
Almighty.  It  is  strictly  logical  and  scientific  to  as- 
sume that  man  comes  forth  from  this  One,  who  is 
named  variously,  but  who,  all  agree,  is  the  origin  of 
everything.  Since  man  is  the  offspring  of  the  Al- 
mighty, he  must  have  the  character  of  his  Parent.  If 
the  earthly  child  resembles  its  parents,  how  much 
more  should  the  heavenly  child.  The  truth  that  God 
is  the  Father  of  man  does  away  with  the  oft-pro- 
claimed presumption  that  it  is  impossible  for  the  finite 
to  understand  the  Infinite.  God  must  be  in  his 
universe  as  everywhere  intelligent  power,  or  it  would 
fall  to  pieces.  God  is  in  the  universe  as  its  constant 
inspiration;  hence,  it  is  only  necessary  to  find  the 
point  of  contact,  in  order  to  understand  that  One  in 
whom  we  all  "live,  and  move,  and  have  our  being." 

£,  Logic  is  a  fundamental  constituent  of  man's  be- 
ing, and  all  minds  acquiesce  in  statements  of  logical 
sequence.  We  all  see  the  relation  and  unity  of 
cause  and  effect,  mentally  stated,  but  because  the 
realm  of  forms  does  not  carry  out  our  premise,  we 
fall  away  from  the  true  standard,  and  try  to  convince 
ourselves  that  our  logic  is,  somehow,  defective.  The 
one  important  thing  which  the  student  of  spiritual 
science  must  learn,  is  to  trust  the  logic  of  the  mind. 
If  appearances  are  out  of  harmony  with  your  mental 
premise,  do  not  let  them  unseat  your  logic.  "Judge 


The  True  Character  of  Being  \  1 

not  according  to  appearance,  but  judge  righteous 
judgment."  You  would  not  take  the  mixed  figures 
of  a  child  working  a  problem  in  mathematics  as  an 
example  of  the  trueness  of  the  principle;  nor  could 
you  detect  the  error  in  the  problem,  unless  you  were 
somewhat  familiar  with  the  rules  of  mathematics. 
Mental  propositions  are  the  standards  and  governing 
principles  in  all  sciences  used  by  man.  In  the  sci- 
ence of  creation  the  same  rule  holds  good.  You 
may  rest  in  the  assurance  that  the  principles  which 
you  mentally  perceive  as  true  of  God,  are  inviolate, 
and  if  there  seems  to  be  error  in  their  outworking,  it 
is  because  of  some  misapplication  on  the  part  of  the 
demonstrator.  By  holding  to  the  principle  and  in- 
sisting upon  its  accuracy,  you  open  the  way  to  a 
fuller  understanding  of  it;  you  will  also  be  shown 
the  cause  of  the  errors  in  the  demonstration. 

Then,  if  you  have  been  in  confusion  mentally  in 
the  contemplation  of  a  world  both  good  and  evil, 
and  have,  in  consequence,  gotten  into  skeptical  ways, 
the  only  true  remedy  is  to  stand  by  the  pure  reason  of 
your  spiritual  perception,  and  let  it  clear  up  the  prop- 
osition for  you.  Dismiss  all  prejudices  based  upon 
the  mixed  perception;  make  your  mind  receptive  to 
the  clearer  understanding  which  will  surely  appear 
when  you  have  taken  sides  with  Spirit,  when  you 
look  to  it  alone  for  the  outworking  of  the  problem. 

This  is  not  blind  belief;  it  is  an  acquiescence  in 
the  superconsciousness  of  the  logic  of  Being.  The 
superconscious  is  man's  only  sure  guide  in  the  mazes 
of  the  creative  processes.  By  trusting  to  the  infalli- 
bility of  this  guide,  man  opens  himself  to  the  inspi- 
ration of  the  Almighty.  Spirituality  may  be  culti- 


12  Lesson  One 

vated,  and  the  deep  things  of  God  may  be  revealed 
to  any  one  who  will  mentally  proclaim  and  affirm  the 
logical  perception  of  the  goodness  and  truth  of 
Being. 

Q  The  central  proposition  in  the  inspiration  of  the 
'  Spirit  is  that  God,  or  Primal  Cause,  is  good.  It 
does  not  make  any  great  difference  what  you  name 
this  Primal  Cause;  the  important  consideration  is  a 
right  concept  of  its  character.  The  Hindu  calls  it 
Brahm,  a  being  of  such  stupendous  proportions  that 
man  shrinks  into  nothingness  in  contemplating  it. 
Although  this  greatness  of  absolute  Being  is  true, 
there  is  also  another  point  of  view — the  smallness  of 
that  same  Being,  as  evidenced  in  the  presence  of  its 
life  in  the  most  insignificant  creations.  So,  in  order 
to  get  at  the  very  heart  of  Being,  it  is  necessary  to 
realize  that  it  is  manifesting  in  the  least  as  well  as  in 
the  greatest,  and  that  in  the  bringing  forth  of  a  uni- 
verse, not  one  idea  could  be  taken  away  without  un- 
balancing the  whole.  This  brings  us  to  a  fuller  real- 
ization of  our  importance  in  the  universe,  and  to  the 
necessity  of  finding  our  right  places.  It  also  puts  us 
into  very  close  touch  with  the  Father  of  all,  the  one 
omnipresent  Intelligence  pervading  everything. 

/  6  The  Father  within  you,  so  lovingly  and  famil- 
iarly revealed  by  Jesus,  is  not  far  away  in  a  place 
called  "heaven."  His  abode  is  in  the  spiritual 
realms  which  underlie  all  creative  forces.  As  Jesus 
realized  and  taught,  "The  kingdom  of  God  is  within 
you.'*  Spirit  is  the  seat  of  power;  its  abode  is  on  the 
invisible  side  of  man's  nature. 

/  /  This  revelation  of  God  immanent  in  the  universe 
was  clearly  set  forth  by  Paul:  "Over  all,  and 


The  True  Character  of  Being  1 3 

through  all,  and  in  all."    The  inspired  ministers  of 
all  times  have  proclaimed  the  same. 
t/*,     The  Power  that  creates  and  sustains  the  uni- 

^verse  includes  the  creating  and  the  sustaining  of  man. 
The  desire  for  a  fuller  understanding  of  this  Power 
has  awakened  a  great  inquiry  into  the  character  of 
the  all-pervading  One.  On  every  hand  men  are 
earnestly  seeking  to  know  about  God,  seeking  to 
come  into  harmonious  relations  with  him.  Some  are 
succeeding,  while  others  seem  to  make  but  little 
progress.  The  diversity  of  results  obtained  is  caused 
by  the  various  ways  of  approaching  the  one  Mind, 
for  such  God  is.  Mind  is  the  key  to  the  whole 
situation,  and  when  man  clearly  discerns  the  science 
of  Mind,  he  will  solve  easily  all  the  mysteries  of 
creation. 

I  2  The  dictionary  definitions  of  mind  and  spirit  are 
nearly  identical,  and  with  this  analogy  we  much 
more  easily  get  in  touch  with  God.  If  spirit  and 
mind  are  synonymous,  we  readily  perceive  that  there 
is  no  great  mystery  about  spiritual  things,  nor  are 
they  far  removed  from  our  daily  thoughts  and  ex- 
periences. "Ye  are  a  temple  of  God,  and  .  .  .  the 
Spirit  of  God  dwelleth  in  you,"  simply  means  that 
God  dwells  in  us  as  our  minds  dwell  in  our  bodies. 
Thus  we  see  that  God  creates  and  moves  creation 
through  the  power  of  mind.  The  vehicles  of  mind 
are  thoughts,  and  it  is  through  our  minds  in  thought 
action  that  we  shall  find  God  and  do  his  will. 
/  There  are  mental  laws  which  investigators  are 
discoverag,  observing,  and  tabulating  as  never  be- 
fore in  the  world's  history.  Man  is  comprehensive 
enough  to  see  the  various  factors  entering  into 


14  Lesson  One 

creative  processes  of  mind,  and  he  is,  through  the 
study  of  mental  laws,  perceiving  and  accepting  the 
science  in  ideas,  thoughts,  and  words.  But  the  in- 
vestigators of  nature  and  her  laws,  from  the  intel- 
lectual and  physical  viewpoint,  fall  short  of  com- 
plete understanding,  because  they  fail  to  trace  back 
to  the  Causing  Mind  the  multitudinous  symbols 
which  make  up  the  visible  universe.  The  material 
forms  that  we  see  about  us  are  the  chalk  marks  of  a 
mighty  problem  being  outworked  by  the  one  Mind. 
To  comprehend  that  problem,  and  to  catch  a  slight 
glimpse  of  its  meaning,  we  must  grasp  the  ideas 
which  the  chalk  marks  represent.  This  is  what  we 
mean  by  studying  Mind  back  of  nature.  Man  is 
mind  and  he  is  capable  of  comprehending  the  plan 

/and  detailed  ideas  of  the  Supreme  Mind. 

3  Divine  Ideas  are  man's  inheritance ;  they  are 
pregnant  with  all  possibility,  because  ideas  are  the 
foundation  and  cause  of  all  that  man  desires. 

With  this  understanding  as  a  foundation,  we 
easily  perceive  how  "all  .  .  .  mine  are  thine."  All 
the  ideas  contained  in  the  one  Father-Mind  are  at 
the  mental  command  of  its  offspring.  Get  behind 
the  thing  into  the  mental  realm  where  it  exists  as  an 
inexhaustible  idea,  and  you  can  draw  upon  it  per- 
petually and  never  deplete  the  source. 

With  this  understanding  of  the  potentiality  of 
Primal  Cause,  we  find  it  a  simple  matter  to  work  the 
problem  of  life — the  key  to  the  situation  being  ideas. 
Thus  life  in  expression  is  activity;  in  Being  it  is  an 
idea  of  activity.  To  make  life  appear  on  the  visible 
plane,  we  have  but  to  open  our  minds  and  thoughts 
to  the  Divine  Idea  of  life  and  activity,  and  lo!  all 


The  True  Character  of  Being  1 5 

visibility  is  obedient  to  us.  It  is  through  this  under- 
standing, and  its  cultivation  in  various  degrees,  that 
men  have  acquired  the  ability  to  raise  dead  bodies. 
Jesus  understood  this  realm  of  supreme  ideas,  or, 
as  he  termed  it,  "the  kingdom  of  God  within." 
When  he  raised  Lazarus  he  invoked  this  power. 
When  Martha  talked  about  a  future  resurrection,  he 
said,  "I  am  the  resurrection,  and  the  life;  he  that 
believeth  on  me,  though  he  die,  yet  shall  he  live." 
One  who  identifies  his  whole  mind  with  omnipresent 
Mind  becomes  so  at-one  with  it  that  he  can  over- 
come death. 

The  real  of  the  universe  is  held  in  the  Mind  of 
Being  as  ideas  of  life,  love,  substance,  intelligence, 
truth,  etc.  These  ideas  may  be  combined  in  a  mul- 
titude of  ways,  producing  infinite  variety  in  the 
realm  of  forms.  There  is  a  right  combination, 
which  constitutes  the  Divine  Order,  the  kingdom  of 
heaven  on  earth.  This  right  relation  of  ideas  and 
the  science  of  right  thought,  is  practical  Christianity. 
The  student  in  the  science  of  Being  should  start 
all  his  investigations  and  mental  processes  from  this 
one  Mind  foundation.  If  you  are  skeptical  about 
the  existence  of  God,  or  if  you  are  an  abstract  be- 
liever without  having  had  any  experience  or  con- 
scious mental  awakening  that  has  given  you  proof, 
you  should  be  very  industrious  in  prayer,  affirmation, 
and  invocation.  Remember,  God  is  not  a  king  who 
can  force  his  presence  upon  you  whether  you  will  or 
not,  but  an  omnipresent  Mind  infolding  and  inter- 

,     penetrating  all  things. 

/<?       There  is  goodness  everlasting  and  joy  beyond 
(expression  in  a  perfect  union  between  your  mind 


I  5  Lesson   One 

and  this  perfect  Mind.  The  point  of  contact  is  a 
willingness  and  a  seeking  on  your  part.  "Seek,  and 
ye  shall  find;  knock,  and  it  shall  be  opened  unto 
you." 

A  o  This  question  naturally  presents  itself:  If  we 
^  are  offsprings  of  this  Divine  Mind,  why  are  we  not 
naturally  conscious  of  its  presence?  The  answer 
to  this  is:  In  using  the  privilege  of  our  inheritance 
— the  power  to  make  ideas  visible  as  things — we 
have  created  a  realm  that  separates  us  in  conscious- 
ness from  the  Father-Mind.  This  is  the  teaching  of 
Jesus  in  the  parable  of  the  prodigal  son.  When  we 
are  weary  of  the  sense  consciousness,  we  have  only 
to  turn  the  face  (intelligence)  toward  the  parent's 
house;  there  we  shall  meet  a  loving  welcome. 
A  i  The  understanding  that  God  is  not  in  a  distant 

^  heaven,  nor  located  in  any  way  geographically, 
gives  us  a  feeling  of  nearness  and  unity  with  the 
parent  Mind.  This  intercommunion  of  the  man 
consciousness  with  the  omnipresent  spiritual  force 
of  the  universe,  was  beautifully  exemplified  by  Jesus. 
God  was  closer  to  him  than  hands  or  feet.  He  re- 
ferred all  things  to  this  loving  Father,  who  was  in 
constant  communion  and  cooperation  with  the  Son; 
yet  there  was,  even  in  his  case,  this  independent 
personal  consciousness  that  beset  him  when  he  sought 
to  be  free  from  mortal  limitations.  So  we  should 
not  be  discouraged  or  cast  down,  if  we  do  not 
quickly  find  the  kingdom  of  God  within  us.  Jesus 
spent  whole  nights  in  prayer;  we  should  not  be 
weary  with  a  few  moments  each  day.  A  daily  half- 
hour  of  meditation  will  open  up  the  mind  to  a  con- 


The  True  Character  of  Being  1  7 

sciousness  of  the  inner  One,  and  will  reveal  many 
things  that  are  hidden  from  the  natural  man. 

The  fact  is,  Truth  cannot  be  imparted — it  must 
individually  experienced.  The  presence  of  the 
Divine  Mind  in  the  soul  cannot  be  told  in  words; 
it  can  be  hinted  at,  and  referred  to  in  parable,  and 
likened  unto  this  and  unto  that,  but  it  can  never  be 
described  as  it  is.  The  ability  of  the  individual 
mind  to  combine  the  ideas  of  Divine  Mind  in  a  con- 
sciousness of  its  own,  makes  each  of  us  the  "only 
begotten  Son,"  a  particular  and  special  creation. 
No  two  individuals  in  all  the  universe  are  exactly 
alike,  because  there  is  always  diversity  in  the  ideas 
appropriated  from  Divine  Mind. 

The  truth  is,  then: 

That  God  is  Principle,  Law,  Being,  Mind, 
Spirit,  All-Good,  omnipotent,  omniscient,  omni- 
present, unchangeable,  Creator,  Father,  Cause,  and 
Source  of  all  that  is ; 

That  God  is  individually  formed  in  conscious- 
ness in  each  of  us,  and  is  known  to  us  as  "Father," 
when  we  recognize  him  within  us  as  our  Creator,  as 
our  mind,  as  our  life,  as  our  very  being ; 

That  mind  has  ideas;  ideas  have  expression. 
All  manifestation  in  our  world  is  the  result  of  the 
ideas  we  are  holding  in  mind  and  are  expressing ; 

That  to  bring  forth  or  to  manifest  the  harmony  of 
Divine  Mind,  or  the  "kingdom  of  heaven,"  all  our 
ideas  must  be  one  with  Divine  Ideas,  and  must  be 
expressed  in  the  Divine  Order  of  Divine  Mind. 


IS  Lesson  One 

STATEMENTS  FOR  THE  REALIZATION  OF  DIVINE 
MIND 

(To  be  used  in  connection  with  Lesson  One.) 

There  is  one  Presence,  one  Intelligence,  one 
Substance,  one  Life:  the  Good  omnipotent. 

God  is  the  name  of  the  everywhere  present  Prin- 
ciple, in  whom  I  live,  move,  and  have  my  being. 

God  is  the  name  of  my  Good. 

In  you  all,  and  through  you  all,  and  above  you 
all,  God  Almighty. 

Thy  name  is  Spirit.  I  know  Thee  as  the  One, 
the  all-seeing  Mind. 

Our  Father  which  art  in  heaven — the  every- 
where present  inner  harmony ;  hallowed  be  thy  name 
— wholeness  manifests  thy  character. 

Thou  art  always  with  me  as  indwelling  Wisdom 
and  Love. 

Thy  law  is  now  the  standard  of  my  life,  and  I 
am  at  peace. 

I  in  Thee  and  Thou  in  me. 

Thou  art  never  absent  from  me — I  now  see 
Thee  face  to  face. 

I  think  Thy  thoughts  after  Thee. 

I  dwell  in  Thee  and  share  Thy  omnipotence. 

In  Thee  is  my  perfection. 


BEING'S  PERFECT  IDEA 

LESSON  TWO 

The  foundation  of  our  science  is  Spirit,  and 
there  must  be  a  spiritual  Truth.  This  spiritual 
Truth  is  God  thinking  out  creation.  God  is  the 
original  Mind  in  which  all  real  ideas  exist.  The 
one  original  Mind  creates  by  thought.  This  is 
stated  in  the  first  chapter  of  John: 

In  the  beginning  was  the  Word  [Logos — Thought- 
Word]  ,  and  the  Word  was  with  God,  and  the  Word  was 
God. 

The  same  was  in  the  beginning  with  God. 

All  things  were  made  through  him;  and  without  him 
was  not  any  thing  made  that  hath  been  made. 

Eadie's  Biblical  Cyclopaedia  says,  "The  term, 
Logos,  means  thought  expressed,  either  as  an  idea 
in  mind  or  as  vocal  speech." 

An  understanding  of  the  Logos  reveals  to  us  the 
law  under  which  all  things  are  brought  forth — the 
law  of  mind  action.  Creation  takes  place  through 
the  operation  of  the  Logos.  God  is  thinking  the 
universe  into  manifestation  right  now.  Even  he  can- 
not create  without  law.  The  law  of  the  Divine 
Creation  is  the  order  and  harmony  of  perfect  thought. 

God-Mind  expresses  its  thoughts  so  perfectly 
that  there  is  no  occasion  for  change,  hence  all  prayers 
and  supplications  for  the  change  of  God's  will  to 
conform  to  human  desires  are  futile.  God  does  not 
change  his  mind,  nor  trim  his  thought,  to  meet  the 

19 


20  Lesson  Two 

conflicting  opinions  of  mankind.  Understanding 
the  perfection  of  God  thoughts,  man  must  conform 
to  them;  then  he  will  discover  that  there  is  never 
necessity  for  any  change  of  the  will  of  God  in  human 
affairs. 

A  key  to  God-Mind  is  with  every  one — it  is  the 
action  of  the  individual  mind.  Man  is  created  in  the 
"image  and  likeness"  of  God;  he  is  therefore  a 
phase  of  God-Mind,  and  his  mind  must  act  like  the 
original  Mind.  Study  your  own  mind,  and  through 
it  you  will  find  God-Mind.  In  no  other  way  can 
you  get  a  complete  understanding  of  yourself,  of 
the  universe,  and  of  the  law  under  which  it  is  being 
brought  forth.  When  you  see  the  Creator  thinking 
out  his  universe,  as  the  mathematician  thinks  out 
his  problem,  you  will  understand  the  necessity  of  the 
very  apparent  effort  that  nature  makes  to  express 
itself.  You  will  also  understand  why  the  impulse 
within  your  soul  for  higher  things  keeps  welling  up. 
God-Mind  is  thinking  in  you;  it  is  pushing  your 
mind  to  grasp  true  ideas  and  carry  them  into  ex- 
pression. 

It  is  therefore  true,  in  logic  and  in  inspiration, 
that  man  and  the  universe  are  within  God-Mind  as 
living,  acting  thoughts.  God-Mind  is  giving  itself 
to  its  creations,  and  those  creations  are  evolving  an 
independence  which  has  the  power  to  cooperate 
with,  or  to  oppose  the  original  Will.  It  is  then  of 
vital  importance  to  study  the  mind  and  understand 
its  laws,  because  the  starting  point  of  every  form  in 
the  universe  is  an  idea. 

Every  man  ^asks  the  question  at  some  time, 
"What  am  I?"  God-Understanding  answers, 


Being  s  Perfect  Idea  21 

"Spiritually,  you  are  my  Idea  of  Myself  as  I  see 
Myself  in  the  ideal ;  physically,  you  are  the  law  of 
my  mind  executing  that  Idea."  "Great  is  the  mys- 
tery of  godliness,"  said  Paul.  A  little  learning  is  a 
dangerous  thing  in  the  study  of  Being.  To  separate 
oneself  from  the  Whole  and  then  attempt  to  find 
out  the  great  mystery,  is  like  dissecting  inanimate 
flesh  to  find  the  sources  of  life. 

If  you  would  know  the  mystery  of  Being,  see 
yourself  in  Being.  Know  yourself  as  an  integral 
idea  in  the  Divine  Mind,  and  all  other  ideas  will 
recognize  you  as  their  fellow  worker.  Throw  your- 
self out  of  the  Holy  Trinity,  and  you  become  an 
onlooker.  Throw  yourself  into  the  Trinity,  and 
you  become  its  avenue  of  expression.  The  Trinity 
is  known  commonly  as  Father,  Son,  and  Holy 
Spirit;  metaphysically,  it  is  known  as  Mind,  Idea, 
Expression.  These  three  are  One.  Each  sees  itself 
as  including  the  other  two,  yet  in  creation  separate. 
Jesus,  the  type  man,  placed  himself  in  the  God- 
head, and  said,  "He  that  hath  seen  me  hath  seen  the 
Father."  But  recognizing  the  supremacy  of  the 
spiritual  Principle  which  he  was  demonstrating,  he 
said,  "The  Father  is  greater  than  I." 

Reducing  the  Trinity  to  simple  numbers  takes 
away  much  of  its  mystery.  When  we  say  that  there 
is  one  Being  with  three  attitudes  of  mind,  we  have 
stated  in  plain  terms  all  that  is  involved  in  the  intri- 
cate theological  doctrine  of  the  Trinity.  The  priest- 
hood has  always  found  it  profitable  to  make  com- 
plex that  which  is  simple.  When  religion  becomes 
an  industry  it  has  its  trade  secrets,  and  they  seem 
very  great  to  the  uninitiated.  Modern  investigation 


22  Lesson  Two 

of  the  character  and  constituency  of  the  mind  is 
taking  away  all  the  mysteries  of  Egyptian,  Hindu, 
Hebrew,  and  the  many  other  religious  and  mystical 
systems  of  the  past.  Advocates  of  these  systems  are 
attempting  to  perpetuate  their  so-called  secret  knowl- 
edge through  the  occult  societies  springing  up  on 
every  side  in  our  day,  but  they  meet  with  indifferent 
success.  The  modern  Truth  seeker  takes  very  little 
on  trust.  Unless  the  claimant  to  occult  lore  can 
demonstrate  his  power  in  the  world  of  affairs,  people 
are  suspicious  of  him.  Religious  awe  for  the  priest- 
hood, which  is  so  prevalent  in  Oriental  countries,  is 
lacking  in  the  majority  of  western  people.  In  India, 
a  yellow-robed  holy  man  is  regarded  with  reverence 
by  both  adults  and  children;  while  in  this  country 
adults  stare,  and  small  boys  throw  rocks,  until  he 
seeks  the  protection  of  the  police.  This  seems  ir- 
reverent, almost  heathenish,  yet  it  is  the  expression 
of  an  innate  repudiation  of  everything  that  seeks  to 
establish  itself  on  any  other  foundation  than  that  of 
practical  demonstration. 

The  mind  of  God  is  spirit,  soul,  body;  that  is, 
mind,  idea,  expression.  The  mind  of  man  is  spirit, 
soul,  body — not  separate  from  God-Mind,  but 
existing  in  it,  and  making  it  manifest  in  an  identity 
peculiar  to  the  individual.  Every  man  is  building 
into  his  consciousness  the  three  departments  of  God- 
Mind,  and  his  success  in  the  process  is  evidenced 
by  the  harmony  in  his  consciousness  of  Spirit,  soul, 
and  body.  If  he  is  all  body,  he  is  but  one  third 
expressed.  If  to  body  he  has  added  soul,  he  is 
two  thirds  man,  and  if  to  these  two  he  is  adding 
Spirit,  he  is  on  the  way  to  the  perfect  manhood  which 


Beings  Perfect  Idea  23 

God  designed.  Man  has  neither  spirit,  soul,  nor 
body  of  his  own — he  has  identity  only.  He  can 
say,  "I."  He  uses  God-Spirit,  God-Soul,  and  God- 
Body,  as  his  "I"  elects.  If  he  uses  them  with  the 
idea  that  they  belong  to  him,  he  develops  selfishness, 
which  limits  his  capacity  and  dwarfs  his  product. 

In  his  right  relation,  man  is  the  inlet  and  the  out- 
let of  an  everywhere  present  life,  substance,  and 
intelligence.  When  his  "I"  recognizes  this  fact  and 
adjusts  itself  to  the  invisible  expressions  of  the  one 
Mind,  man's  mind  becomes  harmonious;  his  life, 
vigorous  and  perpetual;  his  body,  healthy.  It  is 
imperative  that  the  individual  understand  this  rela- 
tion in  order  to  grow  naturally.  It  must  not  only 
be  understood  as  an  abstract  proposition,  but  it  is 
necessary  to  consciously  blend  our  life  with  God- 
Life,  our  intelligence  with  God-Intelligence,  and 
our  body  with  the  "Lord's  Body."  Conscious  iden- 
tification must  prevail  in  the  whole  man,  before  he 
can  be  in  right  relation.  This  involves  not  only  a 
recognition  of  the  universal  Intelligence,  Life,  and 
Substance,  but  also  their  various  combinations  in 
man's  consciousness.  These  combinations  are,  in 
the  individual  world,  dependent  for  perfect  expres- 
sion upon  man's  recognition  of,  and  his  loyalty  to 
his  origin — God-Mind.  Man  is  in  God-Mind  as  a 
perfect  Idea.  God-Mind  is  constantly  trying  to 
express  in  every  man  its  perfect  Idea,  the  real  and 
only  man. 

The  perfect  Man-Idea  in  God-Mind  is  known 
under  various  names  in  the  many  religious  systems. 
The  Krishna  of  the  Hindu  is  the  same  as  the  Christos 
of  the  Greeks,  the  same  as  the  Messiah  of  the  He- 


24  Lesson   Two 

brews.  All  the  great  religions  of  the  world  are 
founded  upon  spiritual  science,  but  not  all  of  that 
science  is  understood  by  their  followers.  The  He- 
brews had  been  told  again  and  again,  by  the  spirit- 
ually wise,  that  a  Messiah,  or  Christ  Man,  would  be 
born  in  their  midst,  but  when  he  came,  they  did  not 
recognize  him,  because  of  their  lack  of  understand- 
ing. They  understood  only  the  letter  of  their  re- 
ligion. A  similar  lack  of  understanding  prevails 
generally  today.  The  Christ  Man,  or  perfect  Idea 
of  God-Mind,  is  now  being  expressed  and  demon- 
strated by  men  and  women  as  never  before  in  the 
history  of  the  race.  Let  those  who  claim  to  be  fol- 
lowers of  the  true  religion,  beware  of  putting  the 
perfect  Idea  out  of  their  synagogues,  as  the  Jews  did 
with  Jesus  the  Christ.  The  ancient  Pharisees  asked 
Jesus,  "By  what  authority  doest  thou  these  things?" 
And  the  modern  Pharisees  are  repeating  the  same 
question.  The  substance  of  Jesus'  answer  was,  "By 
their  fruits  ye  shall  know  them."  (Read  Matthew 
21:23-46.) 

This  perfect  Idea  of  God-Man  is  your  true 
self.  God-Mind  is,  under  the  law  of  thought,  con- 
stantly seeking  to  express  its  perfection  in  you.  It 
is  your  spirit,  and  when  you  ask  for  its  guidance, 
and  place  yourself,  by  prayer  and  affirmation,  in 
mental  touch  with  it,  there  is  a  great  increase  in  its 
manifestation  in  your  life.  It  has  back  of  it  all  the 
powers  of  Being,  and  there  is  nothing  that  it  can- 
not do  if  you  give  it  full  sway,  and  make  your 
thought  strong  enough  to  carry  out  the  great  forces 
which  it  is  seeking  to  express  in  you. 

A  most  important  part  of  the  law  of  mind  action 


Being's  Perfect  Idea  25 

is  the  fact  of  thought  unity.  It  is  absolutely  neces- 
sary to  understand  the  nature  of  this  fact,  before  one 
can  demonstrate  the  power  of  the  superconscious 
mind.  Among  our  associates,  we  like,  and  are  at- 
tracted to  those  who  understand  and  sympathize 
with  our  thought.  The  same  law  holds  good  in 
Divine  Mind — its  thoughts  are  drawn  to,  and  find 
expression  in  the  minds  of  those  who  raise  them- 
selves to  its  thought  standard.  This  means  that 
we  must  think  of  ourselves  as  God  thinks  of  us,  in 
order  to  appreciate  and  to  receive  his  thoughts  and 
to  bring  forth  the  fruits.  If  you  think  of  yourself  as 
anything  less  than  the  perfect  child  of  the  perfect 
Parent,  you  lower  the  thought  standard  of  your 
mind  and  cut  off  the  influx  of  thought  from  the 
Divine  Mind.  Jesus  referred  to  this  law  when  he 
said,  "Ye  therefore  shall  be  perfect,  as  your  heavenly 
Father  is  perfect." 

When  we  go  forth  in  the  understanding  of  man's 
perfect  nature,  we  find  a  new  state  of  consciousness 
forming  in  us;  we  think  and  do  many  things  not  ac- 
cording to  the  established  custom,  and  the  old  men- 
tality rises  up  and  says,  "By  what  authority?"  We 
have  so  long  looked  for  manmade  authority  in  re- 
ligious matters  that  we  feel  we  are  treading  on  dan- 
gerous ground,  if  we  dare  to  think  beyond  prescribed 
doctrines.  Right  here  we  should  appeal  to  the 
supreme  reason  of  the  Spirit,  and  proclaim  what 
we  perceive  as  the  highest  truth,  regardless  of  prec- 
edent or  tradition,  mental  ignorance  or  physical  lim- 
itation: I  AM  is  the  "image  and  likeness  of  God," 
the  "only  begotten  Son"  (the  expressed,  or  pressed 
out  Mind)  of  the  Most  High.  This  is  my  true 


26 


Lesson   Tvo 


estate,  and  I  shall  never  realize  it  until  I  enter  into 
it  in  mind,  because  there  it  is,  and  nowhere  else. 

It  is  only  through  the  superconscious  mind  that 
we  can  behold  and  commune  with  God.  "No  man 
hath  seen  God  at  any  time;  the  only  begotten  Son, 
who  is  in  the  bosom  of  the  Father,  he  hath  declared 
him"  (John  1:18).  It  is  taught  that  Jesus  was 
exclusively  the  "only  begotten  Son,"  but  he  himself 
said,  "Is  it  not  written  in  your  law,  I  said,  Ye  are 
gods?"  He  proclaimed  the  unity  of  all  men  in  the 
Father.  "I  am  the  light  of  the  world."  "Ye  are 
the  light  of  the  world."  Paul  says,  "As  many  as 
are  led  by  the  Spirit  of  God,  these  are  sons  of  God." 
We  are  "heirs  of  God,  and  joint-heirs  with  Christ" 
(Rom.  8:14,  17). 

We  should  not  overlook  one  important  point  in 
this  matter  of  sonship;  that  point  is  the  difference  be- 
tween those  who  perceive  their  sonship  as  a  possi- 
bility, and  those  who  have  demonstrated  it  in  their 
lives.  "Ye  must  be  bora  anew,"  was  the  proclama- 
tion of  Jesus.  The  first  birth  is  the  human — the 
consciousness  of  man  as  an  intellectual  and  physical 
being;  the  second  birth  "anew,"  is  the  transforma- 
tion and  translation  of  the  human  to  a  higher  plane 
of  consciousness. 

The  second  birth  is  "putting  on  Christ."  It  is  a 
process  of  mental  adjustment  and  body  transmuta- 
tion that  takes  place  right  here  on  earth.  "Have 
this  mind  in  you,  which  was  also  in  Christ 
Jesus,"  is  an  epitome  of  a  mental  and  physical  change 
which  may  require  years  to  work  out.  But  all  men 
must  go  through  this  change  before  they  can  enter 
into  the  eternal  life  and  be  as  Jesus  Christ  is. 


Being's  Perfect  Idea  27 

This  being  "bora  again,"  or  "bora  from  above," 
is  not  a  miraculous  change  that  takes  place  in  man ; 
it  is  the  establishment  in  his  consciousness  of  that 
which  has  always  existed  as  the  Man  Idea  in  Divine 
Mind.  God  created  man  in  his  "image  and  like- 
ness." God  being  Spirit,  the  man  he  creates  is 
spiritual.  Therefore,  it  follows  as  a  logical  sequence 
that  man  on  the  positive,  formative,  creative  side  of 
his  nature,  is  the  direct  emanation  of  his  Maker ;  that 
he  is  just  like  his  Maker;  that  he  is  endowed  with 
creative  power,  and  that  he  has  an  inexhaustible  re- 
source from  which  to  draw,  in  his  creative  work.  It 
is  to  this  spiritual  man  that  the  Father  says,  "All 
things  that  are  mine  are  thine." 

Understanding  the  status  of  all  men  in  the  Di- 
vine Mind  gives  us  a  new  light  upon  the  life  of 
Jesus  of  Nazareth,  and  makes  plain  many  of  his 
seemingly  mysterious  statements.  The  spiritual  con- 
sciousness, or  Christ  Mind,  was  quickened  in  him, 
and  through  it  he  realized  his  relation  to  First  Cause. 
When  asked  to  show  the  Father,  whom  he  con- 
stantly talked  to  as  if  he  were  personally  present,  he 
said,  "He  that  hath  seen  me  hath  seen  the  Father." 
Personality  had  been  merged  into  the  universal. 
The  Mind  of  Being  and  the  Thought  of  Being  were 
joined,  and  there  was  no  consciousness  of  separation 
or  apartness. 

Everything  about  man  presages  the  Higher  \ 
Man.  Foremost  of  these  prophecies  is  the  almost  ;. 
universal  desire  for  the  freedom  which  spiritual  life  \ 
promises,  freedom  from  material  limitations.  The  ] 
mortal  perception  spurs  man  on  to  invent  mechanical  1 
devices  which  will  carry  him  above  limitations.  For,/ 


28  Lesson  Tr»o 

example,  he  flies  by  means  external.  In  his  spiritual 
nature  he  is  provided  with  the  ability  to  overcome 
gravity;  when  this  power  is  developed,  it  will  be 
common  to  see  men  and  women  passing  to  and  fro 
in  the  air,  without  wings  or  mechanical  appliances  of 
any  description. 

The  human  organism  has  a  world  of  latent  en- 
ergies waiting  to  be  brought  into  manifestation.  [_  Dis- 
tributed  throughout  the  body  are  many  nerve  centers' 
whose  offices  are  as  yet  but  vaguely  understood. 
In  the  New  Testament,  which  is  a  work  on  spiritual 
physiology,  these  centers  are  referred  to  as  "cities" 
and  "rooms."  The  "upper  room"  is  the  very  top  of 
the  head.  Jesus  was  in  this  "upper  room"  of  his 
mind  when  Nicodemus  came  to  see  him  "by  night*^, 
— meaning  the  ignorance  of  sense  consciousness.  It 
was  to  this  "upper  room"  that  Jesus  told  his  fol- 
lowers to  go  on  the  day  of  Pentecost,  and  to  pray 
until  the  Holy  Spirit  should  come  upon  them.  The 
superconsciousness,  or  Christ  Mind,  finds  its  first 
entrance  into  the  natural  mind  through  this  higher 
brain  center.  VJBy  thought,  speech,  and  deed,  this 
mind  is  brought  into  manifestation.)  The  new  birth 
is  symbolically  described  in  the  nistory  of  Jesus 
Christ. 

"Verily  I  say  unto  you,  that  many  prophets  and 
righteous  men  desired  to  see  the  things  which  ye  see, 
and  saw  them  not ;  and  to  hear  the  things  which  ye 
hear,  and  heard  them  not"  (Matt.  13:17). 


Being's  Perfect  Idea  29 

STATEMENTS  FOR  THE  REALIZATION  OF  THE 
SON  OF  GOD 

(To  be  used  in  connection  with  Lesson  Two.) 

I  am  the  Son  of  God,  and  the  Spirit  of  the  Most 
High  dwells  in  me. 

I  am  the  only  begotten  Son,  dwelling  in  the 
bosom  of  the  Father. 

I  am  the  Lord  of  my  mentality,  and  the  ruler  of 
all  its  thought  people.    - 
f  I  am  the  Christ  of  God.  - 

Through  Christ  I  have  dominion  over  every 
thought  and  word. 

I  am  the  beloved  Son  in  whom  the  Father  is 
well  pleased. 

Of  a  truth  I  am  the  Son  of  God. 

All  that  the  Father  hath  is  mine. 

He  who  hath  seen  me  hath  seen  the  Father. 

I  and  my  Father  are  one. 

My  highest  ideal  is  a  perfect  man. 

My  next  highest  ideal  is  that  I  am  that  perfect 
man. 

I  am  the  image  and  likeness  of  God,  in  whom 
is  my  perfection. 

It  is  written  in  the  law  of  the  Lord,  "Ye  are 
gods,  And  .  .  .  sons  of  the  Most  High." 

This  is  written  that  ye  may  believe  that  Jesus  is 
the  Christ,  the  Son  of  God;  and  that  believing,  ye 
may  have  life  in  his  name. 


MANIFESTATION 

LESSON  THREE 

As  a  rule,  religious  people  are  not  scientific. 
They  think  that  religion  and  science  are  separated 
by  a  gulf,  and  that  the  scientific  mind  is  dangerous. 
Science,  to  them,  is  associated  with  Darwin,  Huxley, 
and  other  students  of  natural  law,  who  have  been 
skeptical  about  the  scientific  accuracy  of  the  Bible, 
and  who,  because  of  their  skepticism,  are  branded  as 
infidels.  Hence  it  has  come  to  be  almost  heresy  for 
a  good  Christian  to  think  about  his  religion  as  having 
a  scientific  side. 

By  science  we  mean  the  systematic  and  orderly 
arrangement  of  knowledge.  This  definition  does 
not  confine  science  to  the  material  world.  There  is 
a  science  in  Christianity,  and  it  is  only  through  the 
understanding  of  this  science  as  a  fundamental  of 
Christianity  that  the  latter  can  be  fully  demonstrated 
in  the  life  of  man.  To  fail  to  understand  the  sci- 
ence upon  which  Spirit  rests,  is  to  fail  in  nearly  every 
demonstration  of  its  power.  Paul  says  in  I  Cor. 
14:15,  "I  will  pray  with  the  spirit,  and  I  will  pray 
with  the  understanding  also." 

There  is  a  gulf  between  the  high  spiritual  and 
the  material  manifestation.  It  is  only  by  bridging 
this  gulf  that  science  and  religion  can  be  reconciled. 
The  bridge  needed  is  the  structure  which  thought 
builds.  When  Christians  understand  the  science  of 
thinking,  the  power  of  thought  to  manifest  itself,  and 

30 


Manifestation  3 1 

how  the  manifestation  of  thought  is  accomplished, 
they  will  no  longer  fear  material  science.  Also, 
when  material  scientists  have  fathomed  the  real  na- 
ture of  that  living  force  which  they  discern  as  ever 
active  in  all  of  nature's  structures,  they  will  have 
more  respect  for  religion. 

Both  the  religionist  and  the  physicist  incorrectly 
hold  that  the  Bible  is  a  historical  description  of 
man's  creation.  Beginning  with  the  very  first 
chapter  of  Genesis,  the  Bible  is  an  allegory.  It  is  so 
regarded  by  the  majority  of  Hebrew  scholars,  and 
they  certainly  ought  to  know  the  character  of  their 
own  scriptures.  Paul  was  a  Hebrew,  and  thor- 
oughly versed  in  the  occultism  of  spiritual  writings; 
he  said,  referring  to  the  story  of  Abraham  and 
Sarah,  "Which  things  contain  an  allegory."  He- 
brews almost  universally  claim  that  the  story  of  the 
Garden  of  Eden,  Adam,  Eve,  and  the  serpent,  is 
symbology. 

In  the  face  of  these  facts,  it  seems  strange  that 
orthodox  Christianity  should  insist  that  the  Bible  is 
a  literal  history.  It  is  this  way  of  looking  at  it  which 
has  stood  in  the  way  of  the  true  spiritual  understand- 
ing. Read  in  the  light  of  the  Spirit,  the  first 
chapter  of  Genesis  is  a  description  in  symbol,  of  the 
creative  action  of  universal  Mind  in  the  realm  of 
ideas.  It  does  not  pertain  to  the  manifest  universe 
any  more  than  the  history  of  the  inventor's  idea  per- 
tains to  the  machine  which  he  afterwards  builds. 
First,  the  problem  is  thought  out,  and  afterwards  the 
structure  is  produced.  So  God  builds  his  universe. 
This  is  explained  in  the  second  chapter  of  Genesis, 
which  says  that  God  "rested  .  .  .  from  all  his 


32  Lesson  Three 

work,"  and  yet  there  were  no  plants  of  the^field, 
"and  there  was  not  a  man  to  till  the  ground."  "And 
Jehovah  God  formed  man  of  the  dust  of  the  ground, 
and  breathed  into  his  nostrils  the  breath  of  life ;  and 
man  became  a  living  soul." 

Only  through  the  perception  of  the  mental  law 
by  which  ideas  manifest  from  the  formless  to  the 
formed,  can  we  understand  and  reconcile  these  two 
apparently  contradictory  chapters.  In  the  light  of 
true  understanding,  everything  is  made  plain,  and  we 
discern  just  how  the  Divine  Mind  is  creating  man 
and  the  universe;  first  the  ideal  concept,  then  the 
manifestation. 

The  six-days'  creation,  as  described  in  the  first 
chapter  of  Genesis,  represents  six  great  ideal  pro- 
jections from  Divine  Mind,  each  more  comprehen- 
sive than  its  predecessor.  The  final  climax  is  reached 
in  the  sixth  degree,  when  that  phase  of  being  called 
man,  appears,  having  dominion  over  everything,  or 
every  idea,  that  has  gone  before.  This  ideal  man, 
who  is  the  "image  and  likeness"  of  "Elohim,"  is  the 
epitome  and  focal  center  around  which  all  creation 
revolves.  Hence,  the  one  important  study  of  man  is 
the  mind  of  man.  It  is  the  key  to  all  mysteries,  both 
religious  and  material.  When  we  know  how  mind 
manifests  from  the  ideal  to  the  so-called  real,  we 
are  no  longer  in  the  dark,  but  have  that  truth  which 
Jesus  said  would  make  us  free. 

There  is  but  one  Man.  On  the  spiritual  side  of 
his  being,  every  man  in  the  universe  has  access  to 
that  Man,  eternally  existing  in  Divine  Mind  as  a 
perfect  Man  Idea.  When  man  appreciates  this 
mighty  truth  and  applies  it  in  his  conscious  thinking, 


Manifestation  33 

all  manifestation  becomes  harmonious  and  orderly 
to  him,  and  he  sees  God  everywhere. 

/A  right  understanding  of  the  Divine  Law  of  cre- 
ation makes  man  a  necessary  faculty  in  God's  great 
work.  Through  man,  God  is  forming  or  manifest- 
ing outwardly  that  which  exists  in  the  ideal.  In 
order,  then,  that  the  creation  shall  go  on  and  be 
fulfilled  as  God  has  designed,  man  must  not  only 
understand  the  law  of  mind  action  in  his  individual 
thought,  but  he  must  also  understand  his  relation  to 
the  universal  Thought.  Not  only  must  he  under- 
stand it,  but  he  must  consciously  cooperate  in  every 
thought  with  Divine  Ideals.  Jesus  Christ  under- 
stood this  law,  and  repeatedly  claimed  that  he  was 
sent  of  God  to  carry  out  the  Divine  Will  in  the 
world.  This  commission  is  given  to  every  man,  and 
no  one  will  have  satisfaction  in  life  until  he  recog- 
nizes this  universal  law;  until  he  becomes  an  obe- 
dient, willing  worker  with  Divine  Mind. 

Spiritual  man  is  I  AM ;  manifest  man  is  /  Will. 
I  AM  is  the  Lord  God  of  Scripture,  and  /  Will  the 
Adam.  It  is  the  I  AM  man  that  forms  and  breathes 
into  the  /  Will  man  the  "breath  of  life."  When  we 
are  in  the  realm  of  the  ideal,  we  are  I  AM ;  when  we 
are  expressing  ideals  in  thought  and  act,  we  are  / 
Will  When  the  /  Will  gets  so  absorbed  in  its 
realm  of  expression  that  it  loses  sight  of  the  ideal 
and  centers  all  its  attention  in  the  manifest,  it  is 
Adam  listening  to  the  serpent  and  hiding  from  the 
Lord  God.  This  breaks  the  connection  between 
Spirit  and  manifestation,  and  man  loses  that  con- 
sciousness which  is  his  under  Divine  Law.  In  this 
state  of  mind,  the  real  source  of  supply  is  cut  off, 


34  Lesson  Three 

and  there  is  a  drawing  upon  the  reserve  forces  of  the 
organism,  the  tree  of  life.  It  is  in  this  experience  that 
man  is  described  as  being  driven  out  of  the  Garden 
of  Eden,  or  the  paradise  of  Being.  ^ 

Every  idea  projects  form.  The  physical  body 
is  the  projection  of  man's  idea;  we  carry  the  body 
in  the  mind.  The  body  is  the  fruit  of  the  tree  of  life 
which  grows  in  the  midst  of  the  garden  of  mind.  If 
the  body-idea  is  grounded  and  rooted  in  T)ivine 
Mind,  the  body  will  be  filled  with  a  perpetual  life 
flow  which  will  repair  all  its  waste  and  heal  all  its 
diseases. 

When  man  realizes  that  there  is  but  one  body, 
and  that  the  conditions  in  his  body  express  the  char- 
acter of  his  thought,  he  has  the  key  to  bodily  perfec- 
tion and  immortality  in  the  flesh.  But  "flesh  and 
blood"  cannot  inherit  the  kingdom  of  God.  The 
"flesh  and  blood"  here  referred  to,  is  the  corruptible 
body-idea  which  men  carry  in  mind.  When  we  get 
the  right  idea  of  the  origin  and  character  of  the 
body,  the  corruptible  will  put  on  incorruption,  and 
our  bodies  will  be  raised  from  the  dead,  as  was  the 
body  of  Jesus.  "Neither  was  he  left  unto  Hades, 
nor  did  his  flesh  see  corruption"  (Acts  2:31). 

The  resurrection  of  our  bodies  from  the  dead, 
begins  in  our  minds.  We  must  change  our  ideas 
about  the  body,  and  hold  to  the  Truth  of  its  origin 
and  destiny  as  conceived  by  God,  in  whose  Mind 
its  real  being  exists.  The  spiritual  body  of  man  is 
the  conception  of  Divine  Mind,  the  creation  of  Spirit 
for  us.  Our  work  is  to  make  this  body  manifest. 

When  we  have  the  right  understanding  of  cre- 
ation, and,  with  its  help,  begin  the  redemption  of  the 


Manifestation  35 

body,  the  Spirit  of  God  quickens  the  inner  life  of  the 
whole  organism,  and  we  know  that  the  promise  in 
Acts  2 : 1 7  is  being  fulfilled  in  us :  "In  the  last  days, 
saith  God,  I  will  pour  forth  of  my  Spirit  upon  all 
flesh." 

The  problem  before  man  in  the  present  race  con- 
sciousness is  how  to  get  back  to  the  "Father's  house," 
in  which  is  inexhaustible  abundance.  As  it  is  by 
an  exercise  of  the  free  will  inherent  in  us  that  we  sep- 
arate ourselves  from  the  Father,  so  it  must  be  through 
that  same  faculty  that  we  again  make  a  conscious 
union  with  him.  We  must  realize  the  foolishness  of 
living  in  that  most  external  realm  where  only  the 
husks  of  things  are,  and  upon  which  we  would  fain 
satisfy  ourselves,  but  cannot.  Then  let  us  turn  our 
attention  within,  and  by  traveling  for  a  season  in 
that  direction,  we  shall  find  the  source  and  substance 
of  life. 

This  turning  within,  after  one  has  for  a  long  time 
been  looking  without,  is  no  easy  matter.  The  mind 
that  has  been  trained  to  the  standards  of  the  formed 
universe,  is  often  slow  to  grasp  the  formless.  But 
there  is  a  state  of  consciousness  in  the  soul  that  has, 
through  ages  of  experience,  learned  about  this  form- 
less world  and  is  at  home  in  it.  Our  dreams,  visions, 
and  spiritual  experiences,  of  which  we  seldom  speak, 
come  from  this  inner  realm.  So  it  is  found  that 
we  have  a  household  waiting  for  us  on  the  subjective 
side  of  our  being,  and  its  welcome  is  worth  all  the 
effort  of  the  journey.  "We  seek  a  country  from 
which  we  came  forth,"  Paul  said  in  substance. 

Individualize  yourself  in  the  highest  by  affirming 
that  in  Spirit  and  in  Truth  you  are  all  that  God  is. 


36  Lesson  Three 

This  is  true  of  man's  spiritual  nature,  and  he  must 
claim  the  supreme  inheritance  before  he  can  enter 
into  the  mighty  mental  and  spiritual  forces  which 
proceed  from  the  kingdom  of  God.  No  one  enters 
into  the  kingdom  of  God  within,  sits  upon  the  throne 
and  abides  there,  until  he  has  the  courage  and  fear- 
lessness to  proclaim  himself  joint  heir  with  Jesus 
Christ.  Then  he  must  prove  his  dominion  by  his 
purity  of  motive,  unselfish  devotion  to  Truth  uni- 
versal, and  a  steady  industry  and  patience  in  over- 
coming the  limitations  of  his  own  sense  consciousness. 

Man's  true  identity  is  in  Divine  Mind.  The 
Idea  has  no  mind  separate  from  the  one  universal 
realm  of  ideas.  Man  must  establish  himself  in  the 
one  and  only  Mind.  He  came  forth  from  it,  and 
his  whole  existence  depends  upon  it ;  then  why  should 
he  not  consciously  make  the  mental  connection  that 
will  establish  the  harmony  and  order  upon  which  all 
existence  depends? 

Nearly  all  religious  systems  aim  to  bring  about 
this  unity  between  God  and  man,  and  many  of  them 
are  quite  successful  in  their  methods.  We  owe 
much  to  the  church,  to  the  education  and  helps 
which  we  have  received  directly  and  indirectly 
through  the  efforts  of  spiritually  minded  people  in 
all  ages.  The  Truth  has  pressed  upon  them,  and 
they  have  demonstrated  it  up  to  their  highest  under- 
standing. We  are  now  in  a  fuller  degree  of  en- 
lightenment concerning  the  mental  laws  governing 
man  and  the  universe,  and  consequently  we  can  more 
definitely  and  scientifically  apply  the  methods  for 
spiritual  development,  which,  in  the  religious  systems, 


Manifestation  37 

are  usually  followed  through  faith.    To  your  faith 
add  understanding. 

Getting  back  into  the  Garden  of  Eden,  or  tak- 
ing possession  of  the  Promised  Land,  is  a  conscious 
entering  into  the  subjective  part  of  one's  own  being. 
In  Divine  Order  the  will  acts  upon  the  body  center 
from  within;  in  the  average  person  this  action  is 
through  reflection  from  without.  In  practice  we  live 
outside  our  bodies  instead  of  within  them.  This 
gives  us  a  very  slender  hold  upon  them,  and  they  are 
in  consequence  weak  and  apt  to  slip  away  from  us 
on  very  slight  pretexts. 

Man  should  constantly  affirm,  "I  AM,  and  / 
Will  manifest  the  perfection  of  the  Mind  within." . 
The  first  part  of  the  statement  is  abstract  truth ;  the 
second  part  is  concrete  identification.  We  must 
learn  the  law  of  expression  from  the  abstract  to  the 
concrete — from  the  formless  to  the  formed.  Every 
idea  makes  a  structure  after  its  own  image  and  like- 
ness, and  all  such  ideas  and  structures  are  grouped 
and  associated  according  to  their  offices. 

'All  ideas  pertaining  to  power,  group  themselves 
about  structures  impregnated  with  power.  /  Such 
ideas  are  not  attracted  to  ideas  of  love.  Love  has 
its  group,  and  it  builds  its  structures  in  a  place  by 
themselves.  We  have  observed  certain  of  the  mani- 
fest centers  in  our  bodies;  we  have  recognized  and 
named  them  as  the  seat  of  emotions,  as  the  expression 
of  characteristics  supposed  to  exist  in  the  soul.  Love 
is  universally  recognized  as  expressing  itself  through 
the  heart,  and  intelligence  through  the  head. 

In  the  study  of  Mind  and  Spirit,  these  inner  cen- 
ters of  consciousness  are  concentrated  upon,  until 


3g  Lesson  Three 

they  respond  to  the  /  mil  and  become  obedient  to 
it.  By  this  method,  man  finds  that  he  can  control 
and  direct  every  function  of  his  organism,  and  per- 
petuate its  life  and  existence  indefinitely. 

This  is  the  "regeneration"  of  the  New  Testa- 
ment, a  process  of  body  refinement  to  the  point  of 
physical  immortality.  Jesus  said  of  this  estate: 
"The  regeneration  when  the  Son  of  man  shall  sit 
on  the  throne  of  his  glory." 


I  AM  REALIZATIONS 

(To  be  used  in  connection  with  Lesson  Three.) 

AM  that  I  AM. 
AM  Identity  demonstrated. 
AM  that  I  AM,  and  there  is  no  other  besides 
me. 

AM  one  with  Almightiness. 
AM  the  Substance  of  Being  made  manifest. 
AM  formed  in  the  perfection  of  the  Divine 
Ideal  Man,  Christ  Jesus. 

My  body  is  not  material ;  it  is  spiritual  and  per- 
fect in  all  its  Being. 

Centered  and  established  in  the  one  Mind,  I 
am  not  disturbed  by  the  falsities  without. 

My  identity  is  in  God,  and  my  work  is  to  estab- 
lish his  kingdom  within  me. 

I  can  do  nothing  of  myself,  but  the   Father 
dwelling  in  me,  he  doeth  the  works. 

I  am  striving  in  all  my  thoughts  and  ways  to 
make  the  "image  and  likeness  of  God"  manifest. 
My  life  is  hid  with  Christ  in  God. 


THE  FORMATIVE  POWER  OF  THOUGHT 

LESSON  FOUR 

That  the  body  is  moved  by  thought,  is  univer- 
sally accepted ;  but  that  thought  is  also  the  builder  of 
the  body,  is  not  so  widely  admitted.  We  know  that 
thought  moves  the  various  members  of  the  body,  be- 
cause we  have  constantly  before  us  the  close  sym- 
pathy between  thought  and  act.  Before  I  run,  I 
think  I  will  run,  and  my  legs  begin  to  move  swiftly 
in  imagination  before  I  begin  the  action  outwardly. 
It  was  found  by  a  system  of  experiments  made  at 
Harvard  University,  that  the  thought  of  running 
throws  the  blood  into  the  legs.  A  man  was  put  flat 
on  his  back  on  a  balanced  beam,  which  was  adjusted 
so  that  the  least  weight  at  head  or  foot  registered  on 
the  index.  When  a  perfect  balance  was  attained, 
the  man  was  given  a  problem  in  mathematics  to  solve. 
Immediately  the  index  showed  increased  weight  at 
the  head,  indicating  that  thought  had  called  the 
blood  there.  Then  he  was  told  to  imagine  that  he 
was  running,  and  the  index  showed  the  weight  grad- 
ually shifting  to  the  feet. 

Here  is  proof  that  thought  not  only  moves  the 
external  members  of  the  body,  but  that  it  controls 
the  fluids  flowing  within  the  body.  If  thought  so 
readily  moves  the  blood  from  place  to  place,  who 
shall  say  that  it  does  not  more  quickly  move  the 
nerve  fluid,  or  that  still  more  volatile  substance,  the 
magnetic  force  that  pervades  all  organisms?  We 

39 


40  Lesson  Four 

affirm  that  it  does,  and  that  it  not  only  moves  these 
various  elements  of  the  body,  but  that  it  also  forms 
and  organizes  their  activities  in  the  body. 

Medical  authorities  of  the  highest  repute  tell  us 
that  certain  organs  of  the  body  are  self-renewing, 
and  that  it  is  a  puzzle  to  them  how  these  parts  ever 
wear  out.  If  you  had  a  sewing  machine  that  con- 
stantly replaced  the  little  particles  worn  away  by 
friction,  can  you  imagine  a  time  when  that  machine 
would  be  destroyed?  In  health,  man's  body  has 
this  power,  and  when  it  is  in  harmony,  it  never  wears 
out.  The  harmony  referred  to,  is  adjustment  to 
the  law  of  Being,  to  the  law  of  Divine  Nature,  to 
the  law  of  God.  It  does  not  matter  what  you  call 
this  fundamental  Principle  underlying  all  life — the 
important  thing  is  to  understand  it,  and  put  oneself 
in  harmony  with  it. 

We  have  always  been  told  that  we  should  be 
healthy  if  we  conformed  to  the  laws  of  nature,  but 
no  one  has  been  able  to  tell  us  just  what  these  laws 
are.  Some  have  said  that  this  conformity  consists  in 
eating  the  right  kind  of  food,  or  in  drinking  the  right 
kind  of  water  in  the  right  sort  of  way,  or  in  breathing 
pure  air,  and  in  wearing  suitable  clothes.  We  have 
done  all  these  things,  and  there  is  yet  something 
lacking.  It  is  quite  evident  that  we  have  not,  by 
observing  these  external  adjustments,  gotten  at  the 
underlying  principle  of  nature.  Nature  works  in- 
telligently, and  we  shall  never  be  able  to  conform  to 
her  laws  until  we  approach  her  as  we  would  a  wise 
and  loving  mother,  who,  we  know,  gladly  gives 
us  what  we  want  when  we  use  it  wisely.  Nature  is 
not  a  blind  force  working  in  darkness  and  ignorance. 


The  Formative  Power  of  Thought  41 

All  her  works  indicate  intelligence — mind  in  action. 
This  being  true,  we  perceive  that  we  cannot  con- 
form to  the  laws  of  nature  until  we  recognize  the 
Mind  through  which  she  works. 

Those  who  have  not  thought  about  this  propo- 
sition, those  who  have  not  tried  to  know  and  under- 
stand the  mental  side  of  life,  are  like  men  walking 
in  broad  daylight  with  their  eyes  closed.  The  mind 
has  eyes,  and  we  can  see  (perceive)  the  inner  intel- 
ligence if  we  look  with  mind.  But  those  who  look 
wholly  with  the  physical  eye  are  really  blind — 
"having  eyes,  see  ye  not."  Man's  salvation  from 
sin,  sickness,  pain,  and  death  comes  by  understand- 
ing and  conforming  to  the  orderly  Mind  back  of 
all  existence.  "Ye  shall  know  the  truth,  and  the 
truth  shall  make  you  free." 

Man  is  an  epitome  of  Being.  Material  science 
says  that  his  body  contains  a  portion  of  all  the  ele- 
ments in  the  earth  and  air.  Psychology  finds  his 
soul  responding  to  all  the  emotions,  sensations,  and 
vibrations  of  the  sentient  world  about  him,  and  spir- 
itual science  discerns  that  his  superconsciousness  is 
inspired  with  all  ideas  fundamental  in  Divine  Mind. 
Man,  then,  is  the  key  to  God  and  the  universe,  and 
he  may  know  all  things  by  studying  his  own  con- 
stitution. Supreme  in  this  constitution  is  mind.  Man 
must  base  all  his  researches  upon  mind,  because  mind 
is  the  starting  point  of  every  thought  and  act. 

Some  metaphysicians  teach  that  man  makes  him- 
self, others  teach  that  God  makes  him,  and  still 
others  hold  that  the  creative  process  is  a  cooperation 
of  God  and  man.  The  latter  is  proved  true  by  those 
who  have  had  the  deepest  spiritual  experiences. 


42  Lesson  Four 

Jesus  recognized  this  dual  creative  process,  as  is 
shown  in  many  statements  relative  to  his  work  and 
the  Father's  work.  "My  Father  worketh  even  until 
now,  and  I  work"  (John  5:17).  God  creates  in 
the  ideal,  and  man  carries  out  in  the  manifest  what 
God  has  idealized.  Jesus  treats  of  this  relation  be- 
tween the  Father  and  the  Son  in  the  fifth  chapter  of 
John:  "The  Son  can  do  nothing  of  himself,  but 
what  he  seeth  the  Father  doing:  for  what  things 
soever  he  doeth,  these  the  Son  also  doeth  in  like 
manner." 

Thought  is  the  creative  power  through  which 
man  builds  a  mentality  and  body  of  perfection. 
Man  understanding!^  uses  his  creative  thought  power 
by  mentally  perceiving  the  right  relation  of  ideas, 
"what  he  seeth  the  Father  doing,"  as  stated  by 
Jesus.  Thus  we  see  the  necessity  not  only  of  think- 
ing right  thoughts,  but  also  of  having  a  right  basis 
for  our  thinking.  We  must  think  from  Principle. 
The  successful  mathematician  bases  all  his  calcula- 
tions on  the  rules  of  mathematical  science;  so  the 
successful  metaphysician  bases  his  creative  thinking 
on  the  unlimited  ideas  of  the  one  Mind.  Chris- 
tianity is  a  science  because  it  is  governed  by  scien- 
tific principles  of  mind.  These  principles  are  really 
the  foundation  of  all  the  various  sciences,  but  they 
are  secondary,  while  divine  science  is  primary. 

The  physical  scientist  does  not  go  back  of  the 
electron,  or  molecule,  or  cell,  in  his  analysis  of  forms. 
He  postulates  that  atoms  have  an  existence,  but  he 
has  never  seen  one.  He  assumes  that  the  realm  be- 
yond the  ken  of  physical  perception  is  not  possible  of 
investigation.  The  metaphysician  delves  into  the 


The  Formative  Pouter  of  Thought  43    \ 

realm  where  atoms,  molecules,  and  cells  are  formed, 
and  he  not  only  sees  how  they  are  made,  but  he  ac- 
quires the  ability  to  make  them.  He  finds  that  they  / 
are  all  dependent  upon  ideas ;  and  that  by  using  right 
ideas  he  can  make  manifest  any  form  or  shape  he 
may  desire.  For  example,  what  is  named  externally 
substance,  has  its  source  in  a  mental  idea  .of  form  and 
shape.  What  is  termed  life  has  its  source  in  an 
idea  of  action.  What  is  termed  intelligence  has  its 
source  in  an  idea  of  knowing.  All  the  manifesta- 
tions which  we  see  about  us  are  produced  in  the  same 
way;  they  have  their  source  in  some  idea  in  mind, 
and  they  can  be  formed  and  transformed  at  will  by 
one  who  understands  and  uses  this  mind  power. 

A  study  of  the  mind  and  its  manifold  manifes- 
tations reveals  a  difference  between  the  thing  and  the 
mind  in  which  the  thing  has  its  original  impetus  as 
an  idea.  Life  in  Divine  Mind  is  unlimited  as  an 
idea  back  of  perpetual,  omnipresent  action,  but  by 
thought  it  may  be  subjected  to  many  limitations. 
Substance  in  Divine  Mind  is  an  idea  of  perfection 
in  form,  but  thought  invariably  caricatures  it.  In- 
telligence in  Divine  Mind  is  All-Knowing,  but 
thought  has  said  that  there  is  ignorance,  and  it  has 
been  so  demonstrated.  It  is  not  true,  therefore,  that 
all  manifestation  is  good  because  the  originating  idea 
came  from  Divine  Mind.  All  ideas  have  their  foun- 
dation in  Divine  Mind,  but  man  has  put  the  limita- 
tion of  his  thought  upon  them,  and  sees  them  "in  a 
mirror,  darkly." 

Applying  this  to  individual  consciousness,  we 
find  just  how  man  thinks  his  body  into  disease.  In- 
stead of  basing  his  thought  upon  what  is  true  in  the 


44  Lesson  Four 

absolute  of  Being,  he  bases  it  on  conditions  as  they 
appear  in  the  formed  realm  about  him,  and  the  re- 
sult is  bodily  discord  in  multitudinous  shapes.  There 
is  a  universal  thought  substance  pervading  all  Nature 
that  is  more  sensitive  than  the  phonographic  record. 
These  mechanical  records  receive  and  preserve  every 
vibration  of  sound,  but  the  thought  substance  does 
better  than  this;  it  transcribes  not  only  all  sounds, 
but  even  the  slightest  vibration  of  thought.  The 
telephone  system  of  a  large  city  is  a  good  illus- 
tration of  the  manner  in  which  thought  works  on  the 
organism.  The  nerves  are  the  wires  and  the  nerve 
fluids  are  the  electricity.  The  ganglionic  aggrega- 
tions throughout  the  body  are  the  substations.  The 
presiding  intelligence  sends  its  thought  from  the 
head;  "Central,"  at  the  solar  plexus,  receives  the 
message  and  makes  connection  with  the  part  of  the 
body  designated.  You  think  of  your  stomach;  in-\ 
stantly  the  connection  is  made  with  that  center  and  ' 
the  presiding  thought  stationed  there  takes  your  mes- 
sage and  carries  it  into  effect.  If  the  message  is, 
"You  are  weak,"  weakness  is  recorded.  If  the 
word  comes,  "You  are  strong,  vigorous,  fearless, 
spiritual,  intelligence,  life,  and  substance,"  that  mes-  / 
sage  is  transcribed  and  carried  into  action. 

Every  part  of  the  body  is  connected  with  this 
great  solar  plexus  central  station,  which  is  very  obe- 
dient in  carrying  out  instructions  received  from  the 
presiding  intelligence  in  the  head.  There  are  several 
great  subcenters  and  innumerable  minor  centers  per- 
vading the  organism.  These  centers  of  thought  are 
the  formed  ideas  of  mind  which  have  an  affinity  for 
one  another,  based  upon  the  attractive  power  of 


The  Formative  Power  of  Thought  45 

love,  the  binding  factor  of  the  organism.  Physical 
science  calls  this  binding  energy  the  centripetal 
power,  but  all  forces  of  whatever  character  are  men- 
tal, and  they  must  be  reduced  to  ideas,  thoughts, 
and  words,  to  be  understood. 

All  ideas  pertaining  to  life  expression  have  their 
center  of  action  in  that  part  of  the  body  called  the 
generative  system;  whatever  thought  we  think  or 
express  in  words  about  /i/e,  is  immediately  sent  to 
this  generative  ganglion  and  registered  there.  These 
thoughts  are  not  only  registered,  but  man  has,  by 
repeated  thinking,  built  up  an  ego,  or  identity,  at 
that  center.  The  dominant  thought  of  this  identity 
is  life  action  in  its  various  phases.  The  life  center  is 
divine,  and  should  be  thought  about  and  used  in  the 
purest,  highest  way.  This  will  lead  to  the  perfect 
manifestation  of  life  in  the  whole  body.  All 
thoughts  about  the  loss  of  life,  or  the  weakness  of 
life,  or  the  impurity  of  life,  should  be  persistently 
denied  out  of  mind,  and  the  strongest  kind  of  af- 
firmation made  of  what  life  is  in  God.  In  this  way 
we  connect  the  life  center  with  its  spiritual  source, 
and  it  is  restored  to  Divine  Harmony. 

A  majority  of  the  ills  that  afflict  the  body  have 
their  origin  in  erroneous  thoughts  about  life,  and  in 
misuse  of  the  life  function.  In  Genesis,  the  life  cen- 
ter is  compared  to  a  tree — its  roots  are  in  the  ground 
and  its  branches  reach  up  to  the  heavens.  All  the 
pleasant  sensations  in  the  organism  are  produced 
by  union  with  the  forces  emanating  from  this  center. 
Along  the  nerves,  or  branches,  it  sends  its  currents 
of  life  to  the  very  extremities  of  the  body,  and  even 
beyond,  into  the  finer  ethers  of  the  soul.  It  is 


46  Lesson  Four 

spiritual,  but  its  vibrations  are  so  subtle  (serpentlike) 
that  man  is  tempted  to  eat  its  fruits,  to  consume  in 
its  pleasant  sensations  the  reserve  forces  of  his  organ- 
ism here  stored.  His  indulgence  unfrocks  him — 
takes  away  his  robe  of  power  and  mastery  and 
dominion  over  the  physical  forces  that  environ  him. 
Instead  of  abiding  at  the  center  of  his  body  and 
consciously  ruling  it  and  the  world  of  nature  without, 
he  is  cast  out  of  the  garden. 

By  a  right  understanding  and  by  the  right 
thoughts  and  words,  man  will  regain  the  kingdom 
within  and  will  be  reinstated  in  the  Garden  of  Eden. 
This  process  of  man's  taking  up  power  and  dominion 
again,  is  now  being  carried  out  in  all  those  who  are 
seeking  the  righteousness  of  the  Christ  Con- 
sciousness. In  this  higher  thought  realm,  all  ideas 
pertaining  to  the  life  of  man  are  in  harmonious  re- 
lation, and  when  we  ask  in  silent  thought  for  this 
knowledge,  our  minds  are  flooded  with  its  light.  We 
apprehend  only  according  to  the  receptivity,  stead- 
fastness, understanding,  and  persistent  faith  of  our 
minds.  But  we  grow  in  faith  and  understanding, 
and  no  matter  how  slow  we  seem  to  be  progressing 
we  should  never  be  discouraged  nor  give  up.  Every 
one  is  heir  to  this  higher  thought  consciousness,  and 
all  must  eventually  attain  it.  When  the  beauty  of 
this  spiritual  realm  is  spread  before  us  we  should 
express  gratitude — give  thanks  to  the  great  Soul  of 
the  universe.  When  the  astronomer,  Kepler,  real- 
ized the  grandeur  of  the  laws  that  were  revealed  to 
him,  he  exclaimed,  "I  thank  thee,  God,  that  I  think 
thy  thoughts  after  thee." 


The  Formative  Power  of  Thought  47 

AFFIRMATIONS  FOR  RIGHT  THINKING 

(To  be  used  in  connection  with  Lesson  Four.) 

"As  he  thinketh  within  himself,  so  is  he/' 

My  heart  is  righteous  toward  God. 

Where  my  thoughts  are  gathered  together  in  my 
Christ  Name,  there  I  AM  in  the  midst  of  them. 

I  will  think  no  evil,  for  Thou  art  always  with 
me. 

The  thoughts  of  God  are  his  angels:  "He  shall 
give  his  angels  charge  concerning  thee." 

The  thought  of  foolishness  is  sin. — Prov.  24 :9. 

The  thoughts  of  the  righteous  are  just. — Prov. 
12:5. 

Commit  thy  works  unto  Jehovah,  And  thy  pur- 
poses shall  be  established. — Prov.  16:3. 

I  know  the  thoughts  that  I  think  toward  you, 
saith  Jehovah,  thoughts  of  peace,  and  not  of  evil. — 
Jer.  29:11. 

How  precious  also  are  thy  thoughts  unto  me,  O 
God!— Psalm  139:17. 

Search  me,  O  God,  and  know  my  heart:  Try 
me,  and  know  my  thoughts. — Psalm  139:23. 

Bringing  every  thought  into  captivity  to  the 
obedience  of  Christ.— II  Cor.  10:5. 

Finally,  brethren,  whatsoever  things  are  true, 
whatsoever  things  are  honorable,  whatsoever  things 
are  just,  whatsoever  things  are  pure,  whatsoever 
things  are  lovely,  whatsoever  things  are  of  good  re- 
port; if  there  be  any  virtue,  and  if  there  be  any 
praise,  think  on  these  things. — Phil.  4:8. 


HOW  TO  CONTROL  THOUGHT 

LESSON  FIVE 

The  thoughts  of  mind  are  identities  that  have  a 
central  ego.  By  this  we  mean  that  every  thought 
has  a  center  around  which  all  its  elements  revolve, 
and  to  which  it  is  obedient  when  no  higher  power 
is  in  evidence.  Thoughts  are  capable  of  expressing 
themselves — they  think.  Man  thinks,  and  he  thinks 
into  his  thoughts  all  that  he  is,  hence  man's  thoughts 
must  be  endowed  with  secondary  power  of  thought. 

There  is,  however,  a  difference  between  the 
original  thinker  and  the  secondary  thought.  One 
has  its  animating  center  in  Spirit,  the  other  in  thought. 
One  is  Son  of  God;  the  other  is  son  of  man. 

The  one  essential  fact  to  understand  is,  that 
there  can  be  no  manifestation  without  intelligence  as 
a  fundamental  factor  and  constituent  part.  Every 
form  in  the  universe,  every  function,  all  action,  all 
substance — all  these  have  a  thinking  part  which  is 
receptive  to  and  controllable  by  man.  Material 
science  has  observed  that  every  molecule  has  three 
things :  intelligence,  substance,  and  action.  It  knows 
where  it  wants  to  go,  it  has  form,  and  it  moves. 

This  intelligent  principle  in  all  things  is  the  key 
to  the  metaphysician's  work.  He  does  not  concern 
himself  with  the  action  and  reaction  of  the  chemistry 
of  matter,  nor  does  he  need  to  know  all  the  intricate 
laws  of  electricity  and  magnetism  in  order  to  get  the 
very  highest  use  of  them.  They  are  susceptible  to 

48 


Hor»  to  Control  Thought  49 

thought  through  the  knowing  factor  in  their  construc- 
tion, and  to  this  susceptibility  he  appeals.  It  is 
through  this  all-pervading  intelligence  that  man  ex- 
ercises his  highest  dominion.  The  Scriptural  state- 
ment of  man's  power  and  dominion  over  all  things  is 
true  only  when  he  is  estimated  mentally. 

It  is  the  testimony  of  all  philosophers  that  every 
thing  is  in  a  .state  of  construction  or  destruction. 
These  two  states  are  all-pervading,  and  they  are  ap- 
parently essential  in  building  the  universe.  The 
metaphysician  discerns  the  cause  of  these  two  move- 
ments to  be  the  "Yes"  and  the  "No"  of  mind. 
These  dual  attributes  of  mind  are  in  evidence  every- 
where, but  they  are  not  understood  by  those  who  ob- 
serve the  form  instead  of  the  Spirit.  The  positive 
and  negative  poles  of  the  magnet  are  states  of  men- 
tal affirmation  and  denial.  In  acid  and  alkali,  sour 
and  sweet,  chemistry  is  proclaiming,  "Yes"  and 
"No."  Night  and  day,  heat  and  cold,  sunshine  and 
shadow,  intelligence  and  ignorance,  good  and  evil, 
saint  and  sinner,  all  are  the  reflections  of  mental 
affirmations  and  denials.  Thus  the  determining 
factor  in  all  manifestation  is  "Yes"  or  "No." 

It  is  found  that,  by  the  use  of  these  mind  forces, 
man  can  dissolve  things  by  denying  their  existence, 
and  that  he  can  build  them  up  by  affirming  their 
presence.  This  is  a  simple  statement,  but  when  it  is 
applied  in  all  the  intricate  thought  forms  of  the  uni- 
verse, it  becomes  complex.  The  law  of  mental 
denial  and  affirmation  will  prove  its  truth  to  all  those 
who  persistently  use  it. 

The  power  of  the  mind  to  build  or  destroy  is  ex- 
emplified most  strikingly  in  the  human  body.  What- 


5Q  Lesson  Five 

ever  we  affirm  as  true  of  us,  manifests  itself  in  due 
season  somewhere  in  the  organism.  Whatever  we 
deny  is  taken  away,  when  the  law  has  had  time  to 
work  itself  out. 

The  body  is  made  of  cells;  some  in  a  radiant 
state,  some  crystallized  into  form.  The  visibility 
of  these  radiant  thought  forms  is  the  result  of  an 
affirmation  of  the  ponderability  of  substance,  or,  it 
is  the  belief  in  man's  mind  that  his  body  is  material 
instead  of  spiritual.  The  affirmative  state  of  mind 
is  a  binding,  holding  process ;  it  involves  all  thoughts 
and  all  thought  manifestations  that  come  within  its 
scope.  If  man  affirms  his  unity  with  the  life,  sub- 
stance, and  intelligence  of  God,  he  lays  hold  of  these 
spiritual  qualities;  if  he  affirms  the  reality  of  matter 
and  the  physical  body  he  forms  a  material  picture 
that  works  itself  out  in  flesh. 

Affirmations  do  not  have  to  be  made  in  set 
terms,  like,  "I  affirm  my  body  to  be  material ;"  the 
general  trend  of  the  mind,  the  sum  total  of  thought 
in  all  its  aspects,  aggregate  the  affirmation  that  fixes 
and  crystallizes  thoughts  into  forms.  The  universal 
desire  and  striving  of  men  and  women  for  material 
possessions  is  the  strongest  kind  of  affirmation,  affect- 
ing both  mind  and  body  in  a  marked  degree.  Stom- 
ach troubles  and  constipation  are  common  complaints 
with  those  who  are  financially  grasping.  The  tense 
state  of  mind  which  this  affirmation  sets  up,  extends 
throughout  the  body;  all  the  muscles,  nerves,  and 
organs  become  fixed  and  almost  immovable.  This 
was  forcibly  illustrated  in  a  certain  banker  who  was 
so  grasping  that  his  right  hand  closed  so  rigidly  that 
he  could  not  open  it.  Again,  a  set  ambition  and  in- 


Hov>  to  Control  Thought  51 

tense  desire  to  excel  in  some  chosen  field  of  work 
will  produce  like  results.  A  dominating  will  fixed 
in  any  direction  is  a  form  of  affirmation,  and  it 
affects  the  life  action  in  the  organism  according  to 
its  intensity.  Inactivity,  congestion,  stiffness,  rigid- 
ity, may  all  be  traced  to  excessive  affirmation. 

The  metaphysical  remedy  for  this  selfish  state 
of  mind  is  denial.  Jesus  said  that  man  must  "Deny 
himself  .  .  .  and  follow  me."  The  "me"  here 
referred  to  is  the  higher  self,  the  Christ,  and  the 
"himself"  is  personality.  Denial  is  putting  away  the 
mental  error,  and  an  entering  into  conscious  relax- 
ation of  both  mind  and  body.  The  healer  does  not 
tell  the  patient  that  his  constipation  is  caused  by 
grasping,  stingy  states  of  mind.  Instead,  he  men- 
tally denies  these  habits  and  holds  the  patient  open 
and  receptive  to  the  great  unselfish  Mind  of  the 
universe.  People  do  not  realize  how  they  are  bound 
by  their  selfishness,  and  it  is  not  wise  to  tell  them 
openly,  until  they  understand  the  difference  between 
their  real  being  and  the  mortal  personality. 

Where  the  "No"  phase  of  mind  is  too  much  in 
evidence,  the  whole  consciousness  is  in  relaxation. 
This  excessive  negation  makes  the  thought  indefinite 
and  vacillating,  the  body  weak  and  flabby.  Pro- 
lapsus, dropsy,  certain  forms  of  kidney  complaints, 
nearly  all  relaxations  in  body  and  functions  are  the 
result  of  the  "I  can't"  state  of  mind.  For  example, 
a  business  man  who  has  for  years  been  intent  on 
money  making,  who  meets  with  a  large  loss  and 
mourns  over  it,  will  have  kidney  trouble  of  some 
kind.  He  believes  that  he  has  lost  his  substance, 
and  a  void  thought  begins  its  dissipation  of  the  very 


52 


Lesson  Five 


tissues  of  his  body.  One  who  has  been  very  am- 
bitious for  the  attainment  of  some  office  or  position, 
and  who  has  been  defeated  in  that  ambition,  will 
usually  "let  go"  the  positive  mental  pole  and  drop 
to  the  negative.  The  result  is  bodily  weakness  some- 
where. We  speak  of  such  people  as  having  "lost 
their  grip."  This  is  exactly  what  they  have  done — 
their  mental  relaxation  has  loosened  their  grasp  upon 
the  organism,  and  it  is  in  a  condition  of  dissolution. 
Physicians  have  marveled  that  so  many  public  men 
have  diabetes  and  Bright's  disease.  It  is  because, 
through  defeat,  they  have  dropped  from  success  to 
discouragement.  The  "failure"  state  of  mind 
throws  the  whole  organism  into  a  panic,  and  its  func- 
tions are  weakened  in  their  life  action.  Instead  of 
the  tonic  of  aspiration  and  hope,  there  is  the  ener- 
vation of  discouragement  and  despair. 

These  are  conditions  that  come  to  those  who 
trust  in  the  arm  of  flesh.  When  the  mind  of  man  is 
set  on  high,  he  never  gives  us  nor  allows  defeat  to 
thwart  his  righteous  ambitions.  His  thought  is  not 
set  on  selfish  attainment,  consequently  he  does  not 
experience  a  mental  vacuum  when  he  meets  with 
loss.  To  one  in  spiritual  understanding,  there  is  no 
loss.  The  going  and  coming  of  material  and  intel- 
lectual things  are  but  changes  in  the  panorama  of 
life.  Changes  are  constantly  taking  place,  and  will 
continue  as  long  as  we  live  in  the  consciousness  of 
duality,  the  "Yes"  and  "No"  state  of  existence, 
which  is  mortality. 

The  object  of  man's  existence  is  to  demonstrate 
the  Truth  of  Being.  This  demonstration  takes  place 
through  experience;  but  there  are  two  ways  of  work- 


Ho+>  to  Control  Thought  53 

ing  out  experience.  The  first  is  by  knowing  the 
law  underlying  every  process,  and  the  second  is  by 
blindly  testing  the  process  without  understanding 
the  law. 

The  race  to  which  we  belong,  made  a  choice 
when  a  certain  stage  of  discretion  was  attained.  An 
illustration  of  this  choice  is  the  allegory  of  the  Gar- 
den of  Eden.  Adam  represents  generic  man.  In 
his  early  stages  he  was  under  the  Law  of  Divine 
Knowing — the  Lord  God  was  his  guide  and  instruc- 
tor; he  made  no  mistakes,  but  lived  consciously  in 
Divine  Understanding. 

AH  experience  develops  personal  identity — the 
consciousness  of  the  powers  of  Being  in  the  self. 
This  is  the  bringing  forth  of  the  free  will  which  is 
inherent  in  all.  In  the  course  of  his  demonstrations 
of  Being,  man  arrives  at  this  place  where  he  feels  his 
ewn  capacity,  and  he  knows  he  can  exercise  it  with- 
out restraint.  "Satan"  is  the  personal  mind  that 
tempts  man  to  try  experience  without  knowledge.  In 
Divine  Illumination  man  does  not  enter  consciously 
into  that  dual  condition  typified  by  the  tree  of  the 
knowledge  of  good  and  evil.  Good  is  all ;  evil  is 
that  which  might  be  if  man  forsook  his  guiding  light. 
In  the  serene  Mind  of  God  there  is  no  duality,  no 
good  and  bad,  no  day  and  night,  no  understanding 
and  ignorance.  The  brilliancy  of  the  All-Knowing 
dissolves  all  shadows,  all  negations. 

It  is  man's  privilege  to  abide  in  the  Light,  to 
know  how  to  work  out  the  problem  of  existence  as 
accurately  as  the  mathematician  who  follows,  with- 
out deviation,  the  rules  of  his  science.  The  Lord  ad- 
monishes the  unfolding  Adam  not  to  "eat,"  not  to 


54  Lesson  five 

incorporate  into  his  consciousness  the  knowledge  of 
duality — good  and  evil.  But  like  the  child  who 
refuses  to  take  the  advice  of  one  who  knows,  man 
falls  into  the  sense  of  pleasure  and  excess.  The  re- 
action of  sense  is  pain.  Through  these  experiences, 
man  comes  into  a  consciousness  of  an  opposite  to  the 
good.  The  dual  mentality  naturally  sets  up  positive 
and  negative  forces  in  his  mind,  and  these  opposing 
forces  are  reflected  into  his  body.  The  commotion 
is  so  great  that  the  soul  is  forced  out  of  its  temple — 
man  is  put  out  of  the  garden,  and  in  time  forgets  his 
former  Edenic  state. 

Some  metaphysicians  argue  that  eating  the  fruit 
of  the  tree  of  knowledge  was  a  necessary  step  in 
man's  evolution;  that  by  experience  we  learn  all 
truth,  and  that  without  experience  We  would  always 
remain  infants.  Here  is  the  difference  between  the 
Christian  and  the  Gentile :  the  one  seeks  the  guiding 
light  of  the  Spirit  in  all  his  ways,  while  the  other 
ignores  that  light,  and  works  out  his  character  like 
Adam,  by  the  sweat  of  his  face.  Hard  experiences 
come  into  our  lives  because  we  do  not  know  the  law 
of  harmonious  thinking.  If  we  think  that  evil  exists 
as  a  power  in  the  world,  that  it  is  working  in  our  lives 
and  in  the  lives  of  those  about  us,  we  make  it  an 
active  force,  and  it  appears  to  be  all  that  we  imagine 
it.  The  poet  truly  discerned,  "There  is  nothing 
either  good  or  bad,  but  thinking  makes  it  so." 

Some  metaphysicians  claim  that  it  is  not  wise  to 
make  denials;  that  the  affirmation  includes  all  the 
mental  movement  necessary  to  man's  perfect  devel- 
opment. This  position  would  be  tenable  if  we  had 
built  up  our  consciousness  according  to  Divine  Law. 


How  to  Control  Thought  55 

The  student  who  has  carried  his  mathematical  prob- 
lem forward  without  making  an  error  does  not  find 
it  necessary  to  erase.  But  if  he  sees  where  he  has 
made  a  wrong  computation,  what  then?  Nothing 
but  an  erasure,  followed  by  a  right  computation, 
will  bring  the  correct  answer.  We  have  all  fallen 
short  of  Divine  Ideals ;  we  must  cross  out  our  errors, 
and  insert  the  truths,  until  our  characters  are  brought 
up  to  the  Jesus  Christ  standard. 

Repentance  is  a  form  of  denial.  The  forgive- 
ness of  sin  is  an  erasure  of  mortal  thoughts  from 
consciousness.  The  joy  which  comes  to  the  con- 
verted Christian  is  the  inflow  of  Divine  Love  after 
the  mind  has  been  cleansed  by  denial  of  sin.  This 
is  a  real  experience  which  may  be  repeated  again 
and  again  by  one  who  understands  the  law  of  Holy 
Spirit  baptism,  until  the  whole  man  is  sanctified  and 
freed  from  sin.  Christians  think  of  the  joyous  exal- 
tation that  marked  their  conversion  as  a  special  sign 
from  the  Lord  in  recognition  of  their  change  of 
heart.  They  look  back  upon  it  as  an  experience  that 
comes  but  once  in  a  lifetime.  But  metaphysicians 
who  have  studied  the  law  of  mind,  who  have  prac- 
ticed denials  and  affirmations  as  a  science,  find  that 
they  can  throw  themselves  into  this  ecstatic  state  at 
will. 

The  mortal  self  is  the  ego  around  which  revolve 
all  thoughts  that  bind  us  to  error.  We  cannot  cross 
all  out  at  once,  but  little  by  little  we  cast  out  the 
specific  thoughts  which  have  accumulated  and  built 
up  that  false  state  of  consciousness  termed  Judas. 
In  the  life  of  Jesus,  Judas  represents  the  false  ego 
which  error  thought  has  generated.  This  "son  of 


56  Lesson  Five 

perdition"  is  so  interwoven  into  the  consciousness 
that  to  kill  him  at  one  fell  swoop,  would  destroy  the 
mentality,  so  he  must  be  counted  as  one  of  the  twelve, 
while  we  know  that  he  "hath  a  devil." 

In  the  symbology  of  Jesus'  life,  Judas  is  repre- 
sented as  the  treasurer;  he  "carried  the  bag."  This 
means  that  this  ego  has  possession  of  the  sex,  or  life 
center,  in  the  organism  and  is  using  it  for  its  own 
selfish  ends.  Judas  was  a  "thief."  The  selfish  use 
of  the  life  and  vitality  of  the  organism  for  the  grati- 
fication of  sense  pleasure,  robs  the  higher  nature, 
and  the  spiritual  man  is  not  built  up.  This  is  the 
betrayal  of  Christ,  and  it  is  constantly  taking  place 
in  those  who  live  to  fleshly,  selfish  ends. 

A  time  comes,  however,  when  Judas  must  be 
eliminated  from  consciousness.  The  agony  of  mind 
and  final  crucifixion  of  Jesus  represent  the  crossing 
out  wholly  of  the  false  ego,  Judas. 

"I  die  daily,"  said  Paul.  The  "I"  that  dies 
daily  is  personal  consciousness,  formed  of  fear,  ig- 
norance, disease,  the  lust  for  material  possessions, 
pride,  anger,  and  the  legion  of  demons  that  cluster 
about  the  personal  ego.  The  only  Savior  of  this 
one  is  Jesus  Christ,  the  spiritual  ego,  or  supercon- 
sciousness.  We  cannot,  in  our  own  strength,  solve 
the  great  purifying  problem,  but  by  giving  ourselves 
wholly  to  Christ,  and  constantly  denying  the  de- 
mands of  the  personal  self,  we  grow  into  the  Divine 
Image.  This  is  the  process  by  which  we  "awake, 
with  beholding  thy  form." 


Hov>  to  Control  Thought  57 

CLEANSING  AND  PURIFYING  STATEMENTS 

(To  be  used  in  connection  with  Lesson  Five.) 

God  is  good  and  God  is  all,  therefore  I  refuse 
to  believe  in  the  reality  of  devil,  or  in  evil  in  any  of 
its  forms. 

God  is  life  and  God  is  all ;  therefore  I  refuse  to 
believe  in  the  reality  of  loss  of  life,  or  death. 

God  is  power  and  strength  and  God  is  all ;  there- 
fore I  refuse  to  believe  in  inefficiency  and  weakness. 

I  am  in  authority.  I  say  to  this  thought,  Go, 
and  he  goeth;  to  another,  Come,  and  he  cometh. 
(Read  Matt.  8:5-13.) 

God  is  wisdom  and  God  is  all ;  therefore  I  refuse 
to  believe  in  ignorance. 

God  is  spiritual  substance  and  God  is  all ;  there- 
fore there  is  no  reality  in  the  limitations  of  matter. 

God  is  inexhaustible  resource  and  God  is  all; 
therefore  I  refuse  to  believe  in  the  reality  of  lack  or 
poverty. 

God  is  love  and  God  is  all ;  therefore  I  refuse  to 
believe  in  hate  or  revenge. 

He  that  is  slow  to  anger  is  better  than  the 
mighty;  And  he  that  ruleth  his  spirit,  than  he  that 
taketh  a  city.— Prov.  16:32. 


THE  WORD 

LESSON  SIX 

In  pure  metaphysics  there  is  but  one  word,  the 
word  of  God.  This  is  the  original  creative  Word, 
or  thought  of  Being.  It  is  the  "God  said"  of 
Genesis.  It  is  referred  to  in  the  first  chapter  of  John 
as  the  Logos.  It  cannot  be  adequately  translated 
into  English.  In  the  original  it  includes  wisdom, 
judgment,  power,  and  in  fact,  all  the  inherent  po- 
tentialities of  Being.  This  Divine  Logos  was  and 
always  is  in  God;  in  fact,  it.  is  God  as  creative 
Power.  The  Divine  Mind  creates  under  law ;  that 
is,  mental  law.  Man  may  get  a  comprehension  of 
the  creative  process  of  Being  by  analyzing  the  ac- 
tion of  his  own  mind.  First  is  mind,  then  the  idea  in 
mind  of  what  the  act  shall  be,  then  the  act  itself.  In 
Divine  Mind  the  idea  is  referred  to  as  the  Word. 

According  to  Genesis  and  all  other  mystical 
writings  bearing  upon  creation,  the  Divine  Mind  ex- 
presses its  Word,  and  through  the  activity  of  that 
Word,  the  universe  is  brought  forth.  Man  is  the 
consummation  of  the  Word,  and  his  spirit  has  within 
it  the  concentration  of  all  that  is  contained  within 
the  Word.  Jesus  is  called  the  Word  of  God. 
"The  Word  became  flesh,  and  dwelt  among  us  (and 
we  beheld  his  glory,  glory  as  of  the  only  begotten 
from  the  Father)."  God  being  perfect,  his  idea, 
thought,  word  must  be  perfect.  The  perfect  One  of 
God  is  spiritual  man.  It  is  through  spiritual  man,  or 

58 


The  Word  59 

Word  of  God,  that  all  things  are  made,  are  brought 
into  manifestation.  "And  without  him  was  not  any- 
thing made  that  hath  been  made."  The  Word  is 
the  "only  begotten"  of  God,  because  there  is  but  one 
idea  of  man  in  Divine  Mind,  and  that  idea  is  man's 
perfect  pattern. 

In  the  first  chapter  of  John  it  is  implied  that  there 
are  things  made  that  are  not  after  divine  ideals, 
consequently  not  real.  The  creations  of  the  Word 
of  God  are  permanent  and  incorruptible.  As  an 
imitator  of  Divine  Mind,  man  has  the  power  to  form 
and  make  manifest  whatsoever  he  idealizes ;  but  un- 
less his  thought  is  unified  with  Divine  Mind  and 
guided  in  its  operations  by  Infinite  Wisdom,  his 
thought  forms  are  perishable. 

Mental  processes  enter  into  all  creations.  Phys- 
ical science  has  discovered  that  every  atom  has  sub- 
stance, force,  and  intelligence;  these  are  the  three 
constituent  parts  of  mind.  Mind  is  the  one  and  only 
creative  power,  and  all  attempts  to  account  for  cre- 
ation from  any  other  standpoint  are  futile.  The  cre- 
ative processes  of  mind  are  continuously  operative; 
creation  is  going  on  all  the  time,  but  the  original 
plan,  the  design  in  Divine  Mind  is  finished. 

Man  cannot  know  how  the  thought,  or  Word, 
works  except  through  his  own  consciousness;  con- 
sequently, he  must  understand,  control,  and  put  in 
order  his  own  word,  for  through  it  he  comprehends 
the  Word  of  God.  Our  most  important  study,  then, 
is  our  own  consciousness.  The  old  Greeks  recog- 
nized this  and  wrote  over  their  temple,  "Man,  know 
thyself."  The  self  of  man  is  spiritual,  and  when  in 
direct  conscious  unity  with  the  parent  Mind,  it  has 


50  Lesson  Six 

permanent  formative  power.  Even  in  his  ignorant 
use  of  thought,  man's  mind  is  forming  conditions, 
even  to  the  changing  of  the  face  of  nature  itself. 
Every  thought  that  goes  forth  from  the  brain,  sends 
vibrations  into  the  surrounding  atmosphere,  and  the 
realm  of  things  is  moved  to  action.  The  effect  is  in 
proportion  to  the  ability  of  the  thinker  to  concentrate 
his  mental  forces.  The  average  thought  vibration 
produces  but  temporary  results,  but  under  intense 
activity  conditions  more  or  less  permanent  are  im- 
pressed upon  the  sensitive  plate  of  the  universal 
ether,  and  through  it,  they  are  brought  into  physical 
manifestation. 

Every  idea  originating  in  Divine  Mind  is  ex- 
pressed in  the  mind  of  man ;  through  the  thought  of 
man,  the  Divine  Mind  idea  is  brought  to  the  outer 
plane  of  consciousness.  In  the  organism  itself  are 
centers  that  respond  to  the  divine  ideas,  as  a  musical 
instrument  sympathetically  responds  to  musical  vi- 
brations. Then  through  another  movement  on  what 
is  termed  the  conscious,  or  most  outer  plane  of 
action,  the  thought  takes  expression  as  the  spoken 
word.  There  is  in  the  formed  conscious  man,  or 
body,  a  point  of  concentration  for  this  word;  and 
through  this  point,  the  word  is  expressed  in  invisible 
vibrations.  For  example,  at  the  root  of  the  tongue 
is  a  brain  center,  and  through  it  the  mind  controls 
the  larynx,  the  tongue,  and  all  the  organs  used  in 
forming  words.  Following  the  creative  law  from  the 
formless  to  the  formed,  we  can  see  how  an  idea  fun- 
damental in  Divine  Mind  is  grasped  by  the  man  ego, 
how  it  takes  form  in  his  thought,  and  how  it  is  later 
expressed  through  his  spoken  word.  If,  in  each  step 


The  Word  61 

of  this  process,  he  conformed  to  the  Divine  Creative 
Law,  man's  word  would  make  things  instantly,  as 
Jesus  made  the  loaves  and  fishes.  But  having  lost, 
in  a  measure,  the  steps  in  this  creative  process  from 
the  within  to  the  without,  there  are  many  breaks  and 
abnormal  conditions,  more  failures  than  successes 
in  the  products. 

However,  every  word  has  its  effect,  though  un- 
seen and  unrecognized.  Jesus  said  a  man  should  be 
held  accountable  for  "every  idle  word,"  and  a  close 
observation  of  the  power  of  mind  in  the  affairs  of  the 
individual,  proves  this  to  be  true.  What  we  think, 
we  usually  express  in  words;  and  our  words  bring 
about  in  our  lives  and  affairs  whatever  we  put  into 
them.  A  weak  thought  in  the  mind  is  followed  by 
words  of  weakness.  Through  the  law  of  expression 
and  form,  words  of  weakness  change  the  character 
of  everything  that  receives  them. 

The  nerves  are  the  wires  that  transmit  the  mes- 
sages to  all  parts  of  the  body,  and  these  parts  being 
thought  formations,  they  carry  out,  in  their  turn,  the 
word  that  has  been  spoken  into  them.  Talking 
about  nervousness  and  weakness  will  produce  those 
conditions  in  the  body;  while  on  the  other  hand, 
sending  forth  the  word  of  strength,  and  affirming 
nerve  poise,  will  bring  about  the  desired  strength  and 
poise.  Talking  about  a  weak  stomach  will  make 
your  stomach  weak.  Talking  about  how  bad  your 
liver  is,  will  fix  that  idea  in  your  liver.  The  usual 
conversation  among  people  creates  ill  instead  of  good 
health,  because  of  wrong  words.  If  the  words  are  of 
disease  as  a  reality,  a  vibration  of  disintegrating 


62  Lesson  Six 

forces  is  set  into  action,  and  this,  in  the  end,  shatters 
the  strongest  organism. 

As  an  example  of  the  vibratory  power  of  the 
spoken  word,  a  vocalist  can  shatter  a  wine  glass  by 
concentrating  upon  it  certain  tones.  Every  time  we 
speak  we  cause  the  atoms  of  the  body  to  tremble  and 
change  their  places.  Not  only  do  we  cause  the 
atoms  of  our  own  bodies  to  change  their  locality,  but 
we  raise  or  lower  the  rate  of  vibration,  and  other- 
wise affect  the  bodies  of  others  with  whom  we  come 
in  contact.  By  telling  the  little  child  that  it  looks 
sick  and  tired,  the  mother  produces  these  conditions 
in  its  mentality  and  body.  If  the  mother  addresses 
words  of  health,  life,  and  strength  to  the  child,  these 
will  set  its  bodily  functions  into  activity,  and  they 
will  in  turn  express  the  harmony  of  the  dominant 
thought. 

Tims  every  word  brings  forth  after  its  kind. 
The  "seed"  is  the  creative  idea  inherent  in  the  word, 
the  nature  which  it  inherits  from  its  parent  source — 
God.  The  enthusiast  in  floral  culture,  who  hovers 
over  and  talks  in  loving  tones  to  her  flowers,  always 
has  success  with  them,  while  her  neighbor,  who  is 
cold  and  indifferent,  fails.  It  is  the  mental  emana- 
tion and  the  creative  Word  that  stimulate  the  recep- 
tive mentality  of  nature,  and  although  the  enthusiast 
may  know  nothing  of  the  law  of  mind,  she  is  using  it 
in  its  most  effective  mode,  the  creative  Word.  In 
like  manner,  the  mind  healer  mentally  and  audibly 
speaks  to  the  same  all-pervading  receptacle,  and  it 
responds  by  building  up  wasted  tissues  and  weak- 
ened functions. 

Mind  is  everywhere,  and  its  avenues  of  expres- 


The  Word  63 

sion,  like  the  ether  of  wireless  telegraphy,  are  strung 
in  every  direction.  The  wonderful  discovery  that 
messages  can  be  sent  around  the  earth  without  visible 
wires,  should  forever  silence  those  who  have  been 
incredulous  when  thought  transference  through  a 
like  ether  is  claimed.  But  there  is  an  even  more 
rapid  and  subtle  transmitter  of  ideas  than  mental 
vibrations,  and  that  is  unity  with  Supreme  Mind. 
This  Mind  exists  as  the  Absolute — the  Unlimited. 
In  its  consciousness  there  is  no  apartness,  no  sepa- 
ration, and  whoever  puts  himself  into  its  conscious- 
ness, can  accomplish  things  instantly. 

When  the  centurion  said  to  Jesus,  "Only  say 
the  word,  and  my  servant  shall  be  healed,"  the 
Master  said  he  had  not  found  so  great  faith  in  all 
Israel,  and  his  healing  word  was,  "As  thou  hast 
believed,  so  be  it  done  unto  thee."  We  must  have  a 
certain  amount  of  faith  in  the  substance  of  the  in- 
visible, and  in  its  ability  to  do  our  will.  When  Peter 
recognized  in  Jesus  that  inner  principle  called  Christ, 
the  Son  of  God,  the  response  was,  "Flesh  and  blood 
hath  not  revealed  it  unto  thee,  but  my  Father  who 
is  in  heaven."  The  Father  must  have  been  present 
to  Peter  as  he  was  to  Jesus,  and  the  "heaven,"  in 
which  Jesus  said  he  was,  must  also  have  been  there. 
The  fact  is,  Being  is  always  present.  Mortal  igno- 
rance and  lack  of  faith  prevent  our  realization  of 
this  truth.  The  more  we  believe  in  the  wisdom, 
power,  substance,  love,  and  life  of  the  one  Mind,  the 
greater  is  its  activity  in  us  and  our  affairs.  Not  only 
should  we  have  faith  in  the  All-Presence,  but  we 
should  also  develop  our  understanding  to  the  end 
that  we  may  know  why  it  manifests  through  us. 


64  Lesson  Six 

Physical  science  is  today  in  advance  of  religion  in 
its  recognition  of  a  universal  life  substance  and  intel- 
ligence. Religion  is  looking  for  this  mighty  Creator 
away  off  in  some  distant  heaven,  right  in  the  face  of 
the  distinct  teaching  of  Jesus  Christ  that  God  is 
Spirit,  and  that  his  kingdom  is  within  man. 

But  physical  science  falls  short  in  that  it  fails  to 
recognize  the  unity  between  the  everywhere  Intelli- 
gence and  the  knowing  principle  in  man.  It  is  seek- 
ing to  know  intellectually,  or  from  the  plane  of 
forms  and  shapes,  that  which  is  of  the  mind.  Phys- 
ical science  has  recognized  the  presence  of  the  cre- 
ative forces,  but  it  does  not  know  the  power  that 
moves  them.  Divine  metaphysics  has  discovered 
the  moving  power  to  be  the  thought  and  word  of 
man,  and  is  proving  the  truth  through  results  in  a 
multitude  of  directions. 

The  spoken  word  carries  vibrations  through  the 
universal  ether,  and  also  moves  the  intelligence  in- 
herent in  every  form,  animate  or  inanimate.  It  has 
been  discovered  that  even  rocks  and  all  minerals 
have  life.  This  is  proof  of  the  omnipresence  of  the 
one  animating  Substance.  Man,  being  the  highest 
emanation  of  Divine  Mind,  has  great  directive 
power,  and  is  really  cooperator  with  God  in  form- 
ing the  universe.  We  should  be  speaking  words  of 
truth  to  everything,  not  only  to  mankind,  but  to  the 
mineral,  vegetable,  and  animal  kingdoms.  The  fine 
discernment  of  the  poet  reveals  that  "the  very  stones 
cry  out,"  where  a  tragedy  has  occurred.  The  all- 
penetrating  ethers  receive  our  thoughts  and  words, 
like  the  wax  cylinder  of  the  phonograph,  only  a  thou- 
sand times  more  accurately;  it  preserves  them  and 


The  Word  65 

echoes  them  back  to  us  in  continuous  vibrations. 
There  are  no  secrets  and  no  concealments.  What 
you  think  and  speak  in  the  inner  chamber,  is  pro- 
claimed from  the  housetops,  said  Jesus,  and  now  we 
know  why  this  is  so.  The  very  walls  of  your 
room,  aye,  even  the  substance  of  the  atmosphere  in 
that  room  is  proclaiming  over  and  over  the  words  you 
have  spoken  there,  whether  you  are  present  or  not. 
For  example,  a  lady  rented  a  room  in  a  certain  city. 
Several  nights  in  succession,  just  as  she  fell  asleep, 
she  heard  a  man  talking  incoherently  about  the  grain 
market.  This  continued  for  some  time,  and  she  men- 
tioned it  to  the  landlady,  who  informed  her  that  the 
room  had  been  last  occupied  by  a  dealer  on  the 
board  of  trade. 

This  power  of  the  Word  is  given  man  to  use. 
The  better  he  understands  the  character  of  God  and 
his  own  relation  to  humanity,  the  more  unselfishly 
will  he  exercise  this  power.  Some  are  using  it  in 
selfish  ways,  but  this  should  not  deter  others  who 
have  a  better  understanding  of  the  law,  from  using 
it  in  righteous  ways.  "If  ye  shall  ask  anything  of  the 
Father,  he  will  give  it  you  in  my  name,"  is  a  promise 
none  should  ignore.  If  we  need  things,  and  if  they 
are  necessary  to  our  happiness,  it  is  not  sacrilegious  to 
set  into  action  this  higher  law  in  attaining  them. 

The  curses  of  the  witch,  and  the  blessings  of  the 
priest  have  always  been  believed  in  by  so-called 
ignorant  and  credulous  people.  In  the  light  of 
modern  revelation,  the  charge  of  ignorance  should  be 
shifted  to  the  unbelieving.  The  word  of  one  in  au- 
thority carries  weight  and  produces  far-reaching 
effects.  The  fiat  of  the  physician  that  a  certain  dis- 


66  Lesson  Six 

ease  must  result  disastrously  to  the  patient,  will, 
when  believed,  act  as  a  foil  to  all  the  healing  forces 
of  nature.  A  pin  scratch  has  resulted  in  blood 
poison,  because  there  was  no  proper  denial  that  such 
a  result  might  follow. 

Man  has  the  power  to  deny  and  dissolve  all  dis- 
integrating, discordant,  and  disease-forming  words. 
Knowledge  of  this  fact  is  the  greatest  discovery  of 
all  ages.  No  other  revelation  from  God  to  man  is 
to  be  compared  with  it.  You  can  make  yourself  a 
new  creature,  and  you  can  build  the  world  about  you 
to  your  highest  ideals.  Do  not  fear,  but  speak  to 
the  Law  Supreme  the  desires  of  your  heart.  If 
your  word  is  selfish,  that  which  comes  to  you  through 
its  use  will  be  unsatisfactory,  but  you  will  profit  by 
the  experience,  and  thus  learn  to  speak  words  of 
righteousness  only.  But  it  is  your  duty  as  expresser 
of  the  Divine  Law  to  speak  forth  the  Logos,  the 
very  Word  of  God,  and  cause  the  Garden  of  Eden, 
the  everywhere  present  Mind-Substance,  to  mani- 
fest its  innate  perfection. 


THE  POWER  OF  WORDS 

(To  be  used   in  connection   with   Lesson   Six.) 

Death  and  life  are  in  the  power  of  the  tongue. 
-Prov.  18:21. 

The  tongue  of  the  wise  is  health. — Prov.  12:18. 
He  that  guardeth  his  mouth  keepeth  his  life. — 
Prov.  13:3. 

Whoso  keepeth  his  mouth  and  his  tongue  Keep- 
eth his  soul  from  troubles. — Prov.  21  :23. 


The  Word  67 

A  fool's  mouth  is  his  destruction,  And  his  lips 
are  the  snare  of  his  soul. — Prov.  18:7. 

Seest  thou  a  man  that  is  hasty  in  his  words? 
There  is  more  hope  of  a  fool  than  of  him. — Prov. 
29:20. 

Pleasant  words  are  as  a  honeycomb,  Sweet  to 
the  soul,  and  health  to  the  bones. — Prov.  1 6 :24. 

The  lips  of  the  wise  shall  preserve  them. — Prov. 
14:3. 

Put  away  from  thee  a  wayward  mouth,  And 
perverse  lips  put  far  from  thee. — Prov.  4:24. 

Shun  profane  babblings:  for  they  will  proceed 
further  in  ungodliness,  and  their  word  will  eat  as 
doth  a  gangrene. — II  Tim.  2:16-17. 

He  that  would  love  life,  And  see  good  days, 
Let  him  refrain  his  tongue  from  evil,  And  his  lips 
that  they  speak  no  guile.— I  Peter  3:10. 

To  him  that  ordereth  his  way  aright  Will  I  show 
the  salvation  of  God.— Psalm  50:23. 

I  will  take  heed  to  my  ways,  That  I  sin  not 
with  my  tongue :  I  will  keep  my  mouth  with  a  bridle. 
While  the  wicked  is  before  me.— Psalm  39 : 1 . 

What  man  is  he  that  desireth  life,  And  loveth 
many  days,  that  he  may  see  good?  Keep  thy  tongue 
from  evil,  And  thy  lips  from  speaking  guile. — Psalm 
34:12-13. 

Every  idle  word  that  men  shall  speak,  they  shall 
give  account  thereof  in  the  day  of  judgment. — 
Matt.  12:36. 


SPIRITUALITY;     OR,     PRAYER     AND 
PRAISE 

LESSON  SEVEN 

By  the  employment  of  many  symbols,  the  Bible 
describes  man  in  his  wholeness— Spirit,  soul,  and 
body.  The  symbols  used  are  men,  places,  tents, 
temples,  etc.  The  name  of  every  person  mentioned 
in  the  Bible  has  a  meaning  representative  of  that 
person's  character.  The  twelve  sons  of  Jacob  rep- 
resent the  twelve  foundation  faculties  of  man.  The 
name  of  each  of  these  sons,  correctly  interpreted, 
gives  the  development  and  office  of  its  particular 
faculty  in  triune  association;  that  is,  its  relation  to 
consciousness  in  Spirit,  in  soul,  and  in  body.  For 
example,  when  the  sons  of  Jacob  were  bora,  their 
mothers  revealed  the  character  of  the  faculty  which 
they  represented.  This  is  set  forth  in  the  29th  and 
30th  chapters  of  Genesis. 

It  is  written  of  the  birth  of  Reuben,  "Leah  con- 
ceived, and  bare  a  son,  and  she  called  his  name 
Reuben :  for  she  said,  Because  Jehovah  hath  looked 
upon  my  affliction."  The  emphasis  is  upon  the 
word  "looked,"  and  by  referring  to  the  Concord- 
ance, we  find  that  the  meaning  of  the  name  Reuben 
is,  "One  who  sees;  vision  of  the  sun."  It  is  clear 
that  this  refers  to  the  bringing  forth  of  sight. 

"And  she  conceived  again,  and  bare  a  son :  and 
said,  Because  Jehovah  hath  heard  that  I  am  hated." 
Here  the  emphasis  is  upon  the  word  "heard,"  and 

68 


Spirituality;  or  Prayer  and  Praise  69 

we  find  that  Simeon  means,  "That  hears  or  obeys; 
that  is,  heard."  This  is  the  bringing  forth  of  hearing. 

"And  she  conceived  again,  and  bare  a  son;  and 
said,  Now  this  time  will  my  husband  be  joined  unto 
me."  In  this  case  the  emphasis  is  upon  the  word 
"joined."  Levi  means  uni'fp,  which  in  body  is  feel- 
ing, in  soul,  sympathy,  and  in  Spirit,  love.  So  each 
of  these  twelve  faculties  in  the  complete  man  func- 
tions in  this  threefold  degree. 

What  is  here  described  as  the  twelve  sons  of 
Jacob  is  the  first,  or  natural  bringing  forth  of  the 
faculties.  A  higher  expression  of  the  faculties  is 
attained  in  the  twelve  disciples  of  Jesus  Christ. 
Simon  Peter  is  hearing  and  faith  united.  John  is 
feeling  and  love  joined.  When  we  believe  what  we 
hear,  there  is  formed  in  us  the  Substance  of  the 
Word,  which  is  Peter,  a  rock,  a  sure  foundation. 
"Belief  cometh  of  hearing,  and  hearing  by  the  word 
of  Christ." 

The  Bible  is  a  very  wonderful  book;  as  man 
develops  in  spiritual  understanding  it  reveals  itself 
to  him,  and  he  sees  why  it  has  been  reverenced  and 
called  holy  by  the  people.  It  is  a  deep  exposition  of 
mental  laws,  and  it  is  also  a  treatise  on  the  true 
physiological  estate  of  the  body.  It  shows  that  the 
human  organism  is  mind  in  action,  rather  than  an 
aggregation  of  purely  material  functions.  But 
above  all,  the  Bible  explains  the  spiritual  character 
of  man  and  the  laws  governing  his  relation  to  God. 
These  are  symbolically  set  forth  as  states  of  con- 
sciousness, illustrated  by  parables  and  allegories. 
Paul  says,  referring  to  the  history  of  Sarah  and 
Abraham,  "Which  things  contain  an  allegory"  (Ga- 


70  Lesson  Seven 

latians  4 :24) .  It  is  written  of  Jesus  Christ,  "And 
without  a  parable  spake  he  nothing  unto  them :  that 
it  might  be  fulfilled  which  was  spoken  through  the 
prophet,  saying,  I  will  open  my  mouth  in  parables; 
I  will  utter  things  hidden  from  the  foundation  of  the 
world."  Jesus  Christ  was  himself  a  parable;  his 
life  was  an  allegory  of  the  experiences  that  man 
passes  through  in  development  from  natural  to  spir- 
itual consciousness.  Hence,  the  Bible  and  the 
prophets  can  be  understood  only  by  those  who  arrive 
mentally  at  the  same  place  that  the  writers  were 
when  they  gave  forth  their  messages.  It  requires  the 
same  inspiration  to  read  the  Scriptures  that  it  re- 
quired originally  to  receive  and  write  them. 

In  the  29th  chapter  of  Genesis  we  read  of 
Jacob's  wife  Leah,  "And  she  conceived  again,  and 
bare  a  son :  and  she  said,  This  time  will  I  praise  Je- 
hovah :  therefore  she  called  his  name  Judah."  The 
Hebrew  meaning  of  the  word  "Judah"  is  praise. 
In  the  Spirit,  praise,  or  prayer,  the  Judah  faculty, 
accumulates  ideas.  In  sense  consciousness  this  fac- 
ulty is  called  acquisitiveness ;  it  accumulates  material 
things  and  when  self  is  dominant,  "hath  a  devil." 
This  is  Judas. 

Each  of  the  twelve  faculties  has  a  center  and  a 
definite  place  of  expression  in  the  body.  Physiology 
has  designated  these  faculty  locations  as  brain  and 
nerve  centers.  Spiritual  perception  reveals  them  to 
be  aggregations  of  ideas,  thoughts,  and  words. 
Thoughts  make  cells,  and  thoughts  of  like  character 
are  drawn  together  in  the  body  by  the  same  law 
that  draws  into  assemblies  and  communities,  people 
of  kindred  ideas.  The  intellectual  man  centers  in 


Spirituality;  or  Prayer  and  Praise  71 

the  head;  the  affectional  man  lives  in  the  heart;  the 
sensual  man  expresses  through  the  abdomen.  The 
activities  of  these  indicated  regions  are  subdivided 
into  a  multitude  of  functions,  all  of  which  are  neces- 
sary to  the  building  up  of  manifest  man  as  he  is 
idealized  in  Divine  Mind. 

At  the  very  apex  of  the  brain  is  a  ganglionic 
center,  which  we  may  term  the  throne  of  reverence 
or  spirituality.  It  is  here  that  man  holds  converse 
with  the  intelligence  of  Divine  Mind.  This  center 
is  the  place  or  "upper  room"  of  a  spiritual  conscious- 
ness designated  in  Scripture  as  Judah.  Its  office  is  to 
pray  and  praise.  The  Judah  faculty  opens  the 
portal  of  that  mysterious  realm  called  the  super- 
conscious,  where  thought  is  impregnated  with  an 
uplifting,  transcendent  quality.  All  lofty  ideals,  all 
the  inspiration  that  elevates  and  idealizes  in  religion, 
poetry,  and  art  originate  here.  It  is  the  kingdom  of 
the  true  and  real  in  all  things. 

The  importance  of  Judah  is  indicated  by  his 
place  in  the  family  of  Jacob  and  Leah.  Jacob, 
supplanter,  was  betrothed  to  Rachel,  ewe.  At  the 
time  of  the  espousal,  the  father  of  Rachel  substituted 
his  elder  daughter  Leah,  for  the  covenanted  bride. 
Leah  means  weary.  The  first  son  of  Leah  was 
sight;  weariness  saw  the  light  of  Spirit.  The  second 
son  was  hearing;  she  was  able  to  receive  the  Word. 
The  third  son  was  union;  she  merged  with  the  Limit- 
less. The  fourth  son  was  praise.  After  the  birth 
of  Judah,  Leah  "left  off  bearing."  Praise  is  the 
complement  of  sight,  hearing,  and  unity.  It  is  the 
redemption  of  weariness,  and  from  it  issues  Messiah, 
the  Anointed  One,  Savior  of  the  world.  Instead  of 


72  Lesson  Seven 

a  supplication,  prayer  should  be  a  jubilant  thanks- 
giving. This  method  of  prayer  quickens  the  mind 
miraculously,  and,  like  a  mighty  magnet,  it  draws  out 
those  spiritual  qualities  which  transform  the  whole 
man  when  they  are  given  expression  in  mind,  body, 
and  affairs. 

Spirituality  is  one  of  the  foundation  faculties  of 
the  mind.  It  is  that  consciousness  which  relates  man 
directly  to  the  Father-Mind.  It  is  quickened  and 
enlarged  through  prayer,  and  through  other  forms  of 
religious  thought  and  worship.  When  we  pray  we 
look  up  from  within,  not  because  God  is  off  in  the 
sky,  but  because  this  spiritual  center  in  the  top  of 
the  head  becomes  active,  and  our  attention  is  nat- 
urally drawn  to  it. 

Prayer  is  natural  to  man,  and  it  should  be  culti- 
vated in  order  to  round  out  his  character.  Prayer  is 
the  language  of  spirituality;  when  developed,  it 
makes  man  master  in  the  realm  of  creative  ideas. 
In  order  to  get  results  from  the  use  of  this  faculty, 
right  thinking  should  be  observed  here  as  well  as 
elsewhere.  To  pray  believing  that  the  prayer  may 
or  may  not  be  answered  at  the  will  of  God,  is  miss- 
ing the  mark.  It  is  a  law  of  mind  that  every  idea  is 
fulfilled  as  soon  as  conceived.  This  law  holds  true 
in  the  spiritual  realm.  "All  things  whatsoever  ye 
pray  and  ask  for,  believe  that  ye  receive  them,  and 
ye  shall  have  them."  In  the  light  of  mind  action, 
the  law  expressed  in  these  words  is  clear.  More- 
over the  faith  implied  is  absolutely  necessary  to  the 
unfailing  answer  to  prayer.  If  we  pray  asking  for 
future  fulfillment,  we  form  that  kind  of  thought 
structure  in  consciousness,  and  our  prayers  are  al- 


Spirituality;  or  Prayer  and  Praise  73 

ways  waiting  for  that  future  fulfillment  which  we 
have  idealized.  If  we  pray  thinking  that  we  do  not 
deserve  the  things  for  which  we  ask,  these  untrue 
and  indefinite  thoughts  carry  themselves  out,  and  we 
grow  to  look  upon  prayer  with  doubt  and  suspicion. 
This  is  called  the  prayer  of  blind  faith,  but  it  is  not 
the  kind  that  Jesus  used,  because  his  prayers  were 
answered. 

It  should  not  be  inferred  that  the  will  of  Divine 
Mind  is  to  be  set  aside  in  prayer ;  we  are  to  pray  that 
the  will  of  God  enter  into  us  and  become  a  moving 
factor  in  our  lives.  "Not  my  will,  but  thine,  be 
done,"  prayed  Jesus.  The  Father  does  not  take  our 
wills  from  us.  Rather,  he  gives  us  the  utmost  free- 
dom in  the  exercise  of  the  will  faculty,  and  he  also 
imparts  an  understanding  of  the  law  through  which 
we  can  make  any  condition  that  we  desire.  "What- 
soever ye  shall  ask  in  my  name,  that  will  I  do," 
becomes  our  assurance. 

One  of  the  offices  of  spirituality  is  to  aggregate 
ideas,  and  through  this  action  man  draws  absolutely 
true  ideas  from  the  universal  Mind.  Thus  prayer 
is  cumulative;  it  accumulates  spiritual  Substance, 
Life,  Intelligence;  it  accumulates  everything  neces- 
sary to  man's  highest  expression.  When  we  pray  in 
spiritual  understanding,  this  highest  realm  of  man's 
mind  contacts  universal,  impersonal  Mind;  the  very 
mind  of  God  is  joined  to  the  mind  of  man.  God 
answers  our  prayers  in  ideas,  thoughts,  words; 
these  are  translated  into  the  realms  without,  in  time 
and  condition.  It  is,  therefore,  important  that  we 
pray  with  understanding  of  the  law,  important  that 
we  always  give  thanks  that  our  prayers  have  been 


74 


Lesson  Seven 


answered  and  fulfilled,  regardless  of  appearances. 
When  Jesus  multiplied  the  loaves  and  fishes,  he 
prayed,  blessed,  and  gave  thanks.  With  under- 
standing and  realization  of  the  relation  between  the 
idea  and  the  fulfillment  of  the  idea,  he  overcame  the 
slow  processes  of  nature,  and  the  loaves  and  fishes 
were  increased  quickly.  We  may  not  be  able  to  at- 
tain at  once  this  speedy  use  of  the  law,  but  we  shall 
approximate  it,  and  we  shall  accelerate  the  natural 
processes,  the  nearer  we  hold  our  idea  to  the  per- 
fection of  the  realm  of  ideas. 

Praise  is  closely  related  to  prayer;  it  is  one  of 
the  avenues  through  which  spirituality  expresses 
itself.  Through  an  inherent  law  of  mind,  we  in- 
crease whatever  we  praise.  The  whole  creation  re- 
sponds to  praise,  and  is  glad.  Animal  trainers  pet 
and  reward  their  charges  with  delicacies  for  acts  of 
obedience;  children  glow  with  joy  and  gladness 
when  they  are  praised.  Even  vegetation  grows 
better  for  those  who  love  it.  We  can  praise  our  own 
ability,  and  the  very  brain  cells  will  expand  and  in- 
crease in  capacity  and  intelligence,  when  we  speak 
words  of  encouragement  and  appreciation  to  them. 

"What  is  seen  hath  not  been  made  out  of  things 
which  appear."  There  is  an  invisible  thought-stuff 
on  which  the  mind  acts,  making  things  through  a  law 
not  yet  fully  understood.  Every  thought  moves 
upon  this  invisible  substance  in  increasing  or  dimin- 
ishing degree.  When  we  praise  the  richness  and 
opulence  of  our  God,  this  thought-stuff  is  tremend- 
ously increased  in  our  mental  atmosphere;  it  reflects 
into  everything  our  minds  and  hands  touch.  When 
the  common  things  are  impregnated  with  our  con- 


Spirituality;  or  Prayer  and  Praise  75 

sciousness  of  Divine  Substance,  they  are  trans- 
formed according  to  our  ideals.  Through  persistent 
application  of  the  Judah  faculty,  a  failing  business 
proposition  can  be  praised  into  a  successful  one. 
Even  inanimate  things  seem  to  receive  the  word  of 
praise,  responding  in  orderly  obedience  when,  before, 
they  had  seemed  to  be  unmanageable.  A  lady  used 
the  law  on  her  sewing  machine  which  she  had  been 
affirming  was  in  bad  order.  She  says  it  gave  her  no 
trouble  afterward.  A  linotype  operator  testified 
that  he  received  a  certain  spiritual  treatment  given 
him  by  a  healer  at  a  certain  hour,  and  that  his  lino- 
type, which  had  been  acting  badly,  immediately  fell 
into  harmonious  ways.  A  lady  living  in  a  country 
town  had  a  rag  carpet  on  her  parlor  floor;  she  had 
for  years  hoped  that  this  carpet  might  be  replaced 
by  a  better  one.  She  heard  of  the  law  and  began 
praising  the  old  carpet.  Inside  of  two  weeks, 
greatly  to  her  surprise,  she  was  given  a  new  carpet, 
from  an  unexpected  source.  These  are  a  few  simple 
illustrations  of  the  possibilities  latent  in  praise. 
Whether  the  changes  were  in  the  inanimate  things  or 
in  the  individuals  dealing  with  them,  does  not  matter, 
so  long  as  the  desired  end  was  attained. 

Turn  the  batteries  of  praise  upon  whatever  you 
wish  to  increase.  Give  thanks  that  it  is  now  fulfill- 
ing your  ideal.  The  faithful  law,  faithfully  ob- 
served, will  reward  you.  You  can  praise  yourself 
from  weakness  to  strength;  from  ignorance  to  intel- 
ligence; from  poverty  to  affluence;  from  sickness  to 
health.  The  little  lad  with  a  few  loaves  and  fishes 
furnished  the  seed  that,  through  the  prayer  and 


76  Lesson  Seven 

thanksgiving  of  Jesus,  increased  sufficiently  to  feed 
five  thousand  people. 

If  we  do  not  receive  answers  to  our  prayers,  it  is 
because  we  have  not  fully  complied  with  the  law. 
"Ye  ask,  and  receive  not,  because  ye  ask  amiss." 
This  does  not  mean  that  we  ask  of  the  Lord  things 
we  do  not  need ;  it  means  that  we  miss  the  mark  in 
the  method  of  asking — our  relation  to  Divine  Mind 
is  not  in  harmony  with  the  law;  the  failure  is  not  in 
God,  but  in  us.  We  should,  therefore,  never  be  dis- 
couraged, but  like  Elijah,  we  should  persist  until  our 
prayers  are  answered. 

All  causes  that  bring  about  permanent  results 
originate  in  Spirit.  Spirituality,  faith,  and  love  are 
God-given  faculties,  and  when  we  are  raised  in  con- 
sciousness to  their  plane,  they  act  naturally  under  a 
spiritual  law  which  we  may  not  comprehend. 
There  is  a  law  of  prayer,  which  man  will  eventually 
recognize  and  apply,  as  he  now  does  the  laws  of 
mathematics  or  music. 

Jesus  said,  "Whatsoever  ye  shall  ask  in  my 
name,  that  will  I  do."  We  ask  "in  his  name"  when 
we  pray  in  the  Jesus  consciousness  of  universal 
Spirit.  He  attained  unity  with  Divine  Mind,  and 
realized  that  his  thoughts  and  words  were  not  from 
himself,  but  from  God.  When  we  pray  in  his  name, 
we  enter  into  his  unity  with  the  Father,  and  attain 
the  same  consciousness. 

God  is  the  always  present,  indwelling  Mind. 
To  realize  God,  we  must  quiet  our  outer  thoughts 
and  enter  into  the  stillness,  peace,  and  harmony  of 
Spirit.  "When  thou  prayest,  enter  into  thine  inner 
chamber,  and  having  shut  thy  door  [outer  conscious- 


Spirituality;  or  Prayer  and  Praise  77 

ness] ,  pray  to  thy  Father  who  is  in  secret,  and  thy 
Father  who  seeth  in  secret  shall  recompense  thee." 
If  we  make  proper  connection  with  Divine  Mind  in 
this  kingdom  of  heaven  within  us,  the  Father  will 
surely  answer  our  prayers.  No  good  thing  will  he 
withhold  from  us  if  we  comply  with  the  law  of  right- 
eous asking.  "Be  still,  and  know  that  I  am  God." 


LIVING  WORDS  TO  QUICKEN  SPIRITUALITY 

"It  is  the  spirit  that  giveth  life;  the  flesh  profit- 
eth  nothing." 

"The  letter  killeth,  but  the  spirit  giveth  life." 

"The  words  that  I  have  spoken  unto  you  are 
spirit,  and  are  life." 

Ye  must  be  bora  from  above. 

"I  am  the  light  of  the  world;"  "ye  are  the  light 
of  the  world." 

"Let  your  light  shine  before  men ;  that  they  may 
see  your  good  works,  and  glorify  your  Father  who 
is  in  heaven." 

I  am  the  Light  that  lighteth  every  man  that 
cometh  into  the  world. 

My  understanding  is  illumined  by  the  Spirit.  I 
am  the  light  of  my  consciousness. 

I  acknowledge  God  at  all  times  as  the  one 
Source  of  my  understanding. 

"Arise,  shine ;  for  thy  light  is  come,  and  the  glory 
of  Jehovah  is  risen  upon  thee." 

The  glory  of  the  Lord  is  risen  upon  me,  and 
I  walk  in  the  light  of  life. 

My  body  is  the  temple  of  the  living  God,  and 
the  glory  of  the  Lord  fills  the  temple. 

Christ  within  me  is  my  glory.    The  brightness  of 


78  Lesson  Seven 

his  presence  casts  out  all  the  darkness  of  error,  and 
my  whole  body  is  full  of  light. 

He  that  loveth  his  brother  abideth  in  the  light, 
and  there  is  no  occasion  of  stumbling  in  him. 

The  Lord  is  my  light  and  my  salvation;  whom 
shall  I  fear?  The  Lord  is  the  strength  of  my  life; 
of  whom  shall  I  be  afraid? 

Thy  light  shall  break  forth  as  the  morning,  and 
thy  health  shall  spring  forth  speedily. 


ESTABLISHING  THE  PERFECT  SUBSTANCE 

(To  be  used  in  connection  with  Lesson  Seven.) 

And  God  created  man  in  his  own  image,  in  the 
image  of  God  created  he  him ;  male  and  female  cre- 
ated he  them. — Gen.  1 :27. 

My  perfection  is  now  established  in  Divine 
Mind. 

Ye  therefore  shall  be  perfect,  as  your  heavenly 
Father  is  perfect. — Matt.  5 :48. 

By  seeing  perfection  in  all  things  I  help  to  make 
it  manifest.  "I  must  be  in  my  Father's  house." 

The  corruptible  flesh  is  changed  into  incorrup- 
tion  by  seeing  it  perfect  and  pure  in  Christ. 

I  see  in  mind  that  perfect  character  which  I  de- 
sire to  be,  and  thus  plant  the  seed-thought  that  brings 
forth  the  perfect  man. 

But  we  all,  with  unveiled  face  beholding  as  in  a 
mirror  the  glory  of  the  Lord,  are  transformed  into 
the  same  image  from  glory  to  glory,  even  as  from  the 
Lord  the  Spirit.— II  Cor.  3:18. 

When  Christ,  who  is  our  life,  shall  be  mani- 
fested, then  shall  ye  also  with  him  be  manifested  in 
glory. — Col.  3 :4. 


FAITH 

LESSON  EIGHT 

Faith  is  assurance  of  things  hoped  for,  a  con- 
viction of  things  not  seen.  ...  By  faith  we  under- 
stand that  the  worlds  have  been  framed  by  the 
word  of  God,  so  that  what  is  seen  hath  not  been 
made  out  of  things  which  appear. — Heb.  11:1,  3. 

In  the  1 1  th  chapter  of  Hebrews,  Paul  piles  the 
achievements  of  faith  mountain  high.  "By  faith 
Enoch  was  translated  that  he  should  not  see  death. 
...  By  faith  Noah,  .  .  .  prepared  an  ark  to  the 
saving  of  his  house.  ...  By  faith  Abraham,  being 
tried,  offered  up  Isaac.  ...  By  faith  Moses,  when 
he  was  born,  was  hid  three  months  by  his  parents. 
...  By  faith  the  walls  of  Jericho  fell  down.  .  .  . 
And  what  shall  I  more  say  ?  for  the  time  will  fail  me 
if  I  tell  of  Gideon,  Barak,  Samson,  Jephthah;  of 
David  and  Samuel  and  the  prophets:  who  through 
faith  subdued  kingdoms,  wrought  righteousness,  ob- 
tained promises,  stopped  the  mouths  of  lions, 
quenched  the  power  of  fire,  escaped  the  edge  of  the 
sword,  from  weakness  were  made  strong,  waxed 
mighty  in  war,  turned  to  flight  armies  of  aliens. 
Women  received  their  dead  by  a  resurrection." 

The  idea  that  faith  is  something  that  has  to  do 
only  with  one's  religious  experience,  is  incorrect. 
Faith  is  a  faculty  of  the  mind  which  finds  its  most 
perfect  expression  in  the  spiritual  nature,  but  in  order 
to  bring  out  the  whole  character  it  should  be  devel- 

79 


80  Lesson  Eight 

oped  in  all  its  phases.  That  it  is  a  power  is  self- 
evident.  People  who  have  faith  in  themselves 
achieve  far  more  than  those  who  do  not  believe  in 
their  own  ability.  We  call  this  self-faith  innate  con- 
fidence, but  confidence  is  only  a  form  of  faith.  Be- 
lief is  another  of  faith's  expressions.  Jesus  appar- 
ently made  no  distinction  between  faith  and  belief. 
He  said,  "Believe  ye  that  I  am  able  to  do  this?"  and 
"Whosoever  .  .  .  shall  not  doubt  in  his  heart,  but 
shall  believe  that  what  he  saith  cometh  to  pass;  he 
shall  have  it."  In  an  analysis  of  the  constituent 
parts  of  man's  consciousness,  we  locate  belief  in  the 
mentality,  working  in  the  thought  realm  without 
contact  with  the  more  interior  substance  of  the  Spirit, 
upon  which  true  faith  is  founded. 

In  Spirit,  faith  is  related  to  what  Paul  calls  sub- 
stance or  assurance.  Jesus  Christ  used  the  same 
illustration  when  he  referred  to  Peter,  a  type  of 
faith,  as  a  Rock  upon  which  he  founded  his  church. 
Here  is  proof  that  faith  is  closely  allied  to  the  endur- 
ing, firm,  unyielding  forms  of  earth  substance.  But 
free  faith  has  the  power  to  do,  and  to  bring  about 
results  in  the  affairs  of  those  who  cultivate  it. 

Like  the  other  faculties,  faith  has  a  center 
through  which  it  acts  and  expresses  outwardly  its 
spiritual  powers.  Physiologists  call  this  center  the 
pineal  gland,  and  they  locate  it  in  the  upper  brain. 
By  meditation  man  lights  up  the  inner  mind,  and 
he  receives  more  than  he  can  put  into  words.  Only 
those  who  have  strengthened  these  interior  faculties 
can  appreciate  the  wonderful,  undeveloped  possi- 
bilities in  man.  The  physiologist  sees  the  faculties  as 
brain  cells;  the  psychologist  views  them  as  thought 


Faith  81 

combinations,  but  the  spiritually  minded  beholds 
them  as  pure  ideas,  unrelated,  free,  all-potential. 

Faith  can  be  extended  in  consciousness  in  every 
direction.  It  will  accomplish  wonderful  things  if 
quickened  and  allowed  free  expression  in  its  native 
realm.  When  Jesus  said,  "If  ye  have  faith  as  a 
grain  of  mustard  seed,  ye  shall  say  unto  this  moun- 
tain, Remove  hence  to  yonder  place ;  and  it  shall  re- 
move; and  nothing  shall  be  impossible  unto  you,"  he 
referred  to  faith  working  in  spiritual  consciousness. 
Such  results  are  possible  only  to  the  faith  that  co- 
operates with  creative  Law.  Where  faith  is  planted 
in  outer  things,  the  results  are  not  worthy  of  men- 
tion. Men  have  named  them  luck,  accident,  chance, 
etc.  They  seem  to  work  for  a  little  while,  then 
suddenly  change,  showing  that  they  are  not  under 
any  enduring  law. 

When  faith  is  reflected  in  the  intellectual  realm, 
the  results  are  usually  profitable  to  the  man  of 
brains.  If  he  has  faith  in  his  art,  or  his  science,  or 
his  philosophy,  it  answers  his  purpose,  for  a  time,  at 
least.  But  here  it  never  gets  beyond  the  traditions 
and  experiences  of  precedent.  Intellectual  people 
do  no  miracles  through  faith  because  they  always 
limit  it  to  what  the  intellect  says  is  law.  It  is  when 
faith  is  exercised  deep  in  spiritual  consciousness  that 
it  finds  its  right  place,  and  here  under  Divine  Law, 
without  variation  or  disappointment,  it  brings  results 
seemingly  miraculous. 

Faith  has  always  had  a  very  large  place  in  the 
experiences  of  religious  people  because  they  have 
given  it  free  scope,  expecting  great  things  through 
it  from  the  Lord.  But  nearly  all  faith  demonstra- 


82  Lesson  Eight 

tions  have  been  the  result  of  a  sort  of  blind  confi- 
dence that  God  would  carry  out  whatever  was 
asked  of  him.  Sometimes  the  petitioner  was  disap- 
pointed, and  a  series  of  disappointments  usually  led 
to  doubt  and  to  the  conclusion  that  God  had  in  some 
way  changed  his  law.  The  early  Christians  were 
taught  by  Jesus  and  his  disciples  to  have  faith  in 
God,  and  they  did  wonderful,  so-called  miracu- 
lous works.  As  time  went  on  and  their  attention 
was  more  and  more  drawn  to  worldly  things,  the 
Christians  of  a  later  day  became  separated  from  the 
spiritual  forces  within  and  their  faith  lost  its  energy. 
Then  they  began  teaching  that  miracles  were  no 
longer  necessary;  that  God  had  given  them  to  the 
early  Christians  because  they  did  not  have  the  Bible 
nor  an  organized  church.  They  also  taught  that 
the  miracles  were  given  to  prove  that  Jesus  was  the 
Son  of  God. 

Now  we  have  a  fuller  understanding  of  the  law 
of  God,  and  we  know  that  whatever  has  been  done 
once  can  be  done  again  under  like  conditions.  If 
Jesus  and  his  disciples,  and  the  early  Christians  did 
marvelous  things  through  the  prayer  of  faith,  we  can 
do  them.  All  that  is  required  is  persistence  in  our 
use  of  faith  until  we  make  connection  with  the 
higher  realms  of  consciousness,  where,  as  Jesus  said, 
though  our  faith  be  as  small  as  the  smallest  of  seeds, 
it  will  spring  forth  and  demonstrate  its  power  to 
carry  out  every  desire  that  we  put  into  it.  "Noth- 
ing shall  be  impossible  unto  you,"  if  your  faith  is  in 
Spirit,  and  if  your  work  is  in  harmony  with  Divine 
Mind. 

The  Christian  religion  has  been  a  great  factor 


Faith  83 

in  the  development  of  faith  in  the  inner  realms  of 
man's  being.  "Blessed  are  they  that  have  not  seen, 
and  yet  have  believed."  The  power  to  see  in  Spirit 
is  peculiar  to  faith.  In  its  outer  expression  this 
power  is  sight;  interiorly  it  is  that  which  perceives 
the  reality  of  substance  of  Spirit.  Mental  seeing  is 
knowing;  when  we  perceive  the  truth  of  a  propo- 
sition, we  say,  "I  see,  I  see,"  meaning  that  we  men- 
tally discern. 

Faith  in  the  reality  of  things  spiritual  develops 
the  faith  center  in  the  brain,  called  the  pineal  gland. 
When  this  embryo  eye  is  illuminated  with  spiritual 
faith,  it  sheds  a  radiance  like  a  halo  around  the 
head,  and  extends  in  lessening  degree  throughout  the 
whole  body.  "When  thine  eye  is  single,  thy  whole 
body  also  is  full  of  light."  The  halo  which  the 
early  artists  painted  around  the  heads  of  saints  was 
not  imaginary,  but  real.  This  illuminating  power  of 
faith  covers  the  whole  constitution  of  man,  making 
him  master  of  all  the  forces  centering  about  spiritual 
consciousness.  Faith  and  prayer  go  hand  in  hand. 
S  "The  faith  which  thou  hast,  have  thou  to  thy- 
/self  before  God.  Happy  is  he  that  judgeth  not  him- 
/  self  in  that  which  he  approveth."  Have  faith  in 
^  what  you  do,  and  after  it  is  done  do  not  condemn 
yourself.  We  are  all  seeking  happiness,  content- 
ment, and  we  know  by  experience  that  we  are  happy 
we  are  in  tune  with  our  environment.  There 
is  a  great  variety  of  ideas  which  cause  us  inharmony. 
We  think  that  if  we  have  money  and  friends,  we  can 
be  happy;  but  it  is  not  things  that  make  happiness. 
It  is  our  mental  attitude  toward  things  that  fixes  our 
relation  to  them,  and  the  better  we  understand  the 


g4  Lesson  Eight 

innate  substance  of  the  world  about  us,  the  more  do 
we  appreciate  it. 

Faith  is  ever  active,  and  it  should  be  made  the 
true  substance  of  every  idea.  We  must  have  faith  in 
our  own  power,  capacity,  and  ability,  and  to  have 
this  faith  our  thoughts  must  be  centered  in  the  great 
universal  Mind.  Success  lies  in  God.  Whatsoever 
is  not  of  faith  is  sin;  then  whatsoever  is  of  faith  is 
not  sin.  This  is  the  new  standard  of  righteousness 
for  the  man  who  is  putting  on  Christ.  It  is  his 
breastplate,  his  protection  while  he  is  coming  up  into 
knowledge  of  the  absolute  Good.  Sin  is  missing 
the  mark,  and  we  miss  it  by  not  having  faith. 

Faith  in  the  reality,  power,  and  willingness  of  the 
mental  and  spiritual  forces,  is  absolutely  necessary  to 
one  who  expects  to  succeed  in  demonstrating  the 
higher  law.  Jesus  was  the  herald  of  a  set  of  laws 
which  will  revolutionize  the  whole  civilization  of  this 
world  and  which  will  produce  a  new  and  higher  type 
of  man.  He  called  this  new  condition  for  the  uplift 
of  the  race,  the  "kingdom  of  heaven,"  and  he  said  it 
must  be  built  upon  the  foundation  typified  by  Peter 
(a  rock) ,  which  is  faith.  The  development  of  the 
faith  faculty  in  the  mind  is  as  necessary  to  the  worker 
in  spiritual  principles  as  is  the  development  of  the 
mathematical  faculty  in  the  worker  of  mathematics. 
Neither  of  these  faculties  comes  at  a  bound  fully 
formed  into  consciousness,  but  both  grow  by  culti- 
vation. "Increase  pur  faith,"  said  the  disciples,  and 
Jesus  answered,  "Have  faith  in  God." 

All  readers  of  Scripture  recognize  Peter  as  a 
type  of  faith.  By  studying  his  experiences,  we  may 
get  suggestions  on  the  development  of  that  faculty 


Faith  85 

in  ourselves.  The  fluctuating  allegiance  of  Peter  to 
Jesus  illustrates  the  growth  of  faith  in  one  who  has 
had  no  development  of  that  faculty.  Faith  and 
doubt  contend  for  the  supremacy  in  Peter,  and  we 
wonder  why  Jesus  would  choose  as  his  chief  disciple 
this  vacillating,  weak,  and  cowardly  fisherman.  But 
we  observe  that  Peter  was  enthusiastic,  bold  at 
times,  receptive  and  patient  under  reproof.  He  had 
never  walked  on  the  water,  but  when  Jesus  said, 
"Come,"  he  boldly  went  out  to  meet  him.  Doubt 
entered  his  mind,  and  he  sank ;  but  the  helping  hand 
was  extended  to  him  and  he  was  made  stronger 
by  the  experience.  This  and  many  other  illustra- 
tions in  the  history  of  Peter,  show  how  faith  grows 
in  the  mind,  and  we  should  not  be  discouraged  if 
our  first  efforts  fall  short  of  the  desired  end. 

A  very  little  faith  often  produces  surprising  re- 
sults. The  forces  invisible  are  much  closer  than  we 
think,  and  when  we  turn  our  attention  in  their  direc- 
tion the  response  is  usually  so  pronounced  and  so 
swift  that  we  cannot  but  feel  that  a  miracle  has  been 
performed.  A  more  intimate  acquaintance  with  the 
Divine  Law  convinces  us  that  under  it  all  things  are 
possible  if  we  only  believe,  and  if  we  at  the  same 
time  conform  our  thoughts  to  its  principle. 

Peter  (faith),  James  (judgment),  and  John 
(love)  were  the  three  disciples  who  were  very  close 
to  Jesus,  and  they  are  more  prominent  in  his  history 
than  all  the  others.  This  indicates  that  these  three 
faculties  are  developed  in  advance  of  the  others,  also 
that  they  are  closely  associated.  Understanding  re- 
veals to  us  that  God  is  a  Mind-Principle  whose 
foundation  is  ideas.  When  this  character  of  the 


86  Lesson  Eight 

creative  Principle  dawns  upon  us,  we  see  how  easy 
it  is  to  commune  with  God.  Through  this  com- 
munion we  almost  unconsciously  strengthen  faith, 
and  we  find  that  one  faculty  helps  another  to  grow. 
But  there  must  be  room  in  which  to  grow,  and  room 
is  made  by  love.  Selfishness  is  limitation;  it  binds 
man  in  a  little  prison  called  personality.  The  only 
way  to  enlarge  the  character  and  give  play  to  all  the 
faculties  is  through  love.  Love  enlarges  the  field  of 
consciousness  by  leveling  the  thoughts  of  enmity  and 
opposition.  Make  friends  with  all  your  adversaries 
quickly,  whether  they  be  persons,  thoughts,  or  things. 

We  are  constantly  making  conditions  through 
our  thoughts.  Some  people  declare  that  everything 
is  against  them.  If  they  miss  a  car,  they  say,  "It  is 
always  the  way,"  and  they  build  up  a  state  of  mind 
in  which  everything  seems  contrary  to  them. 

In  all  of  our  lives  we  should  condemn  nothing 
that  comes  to  us  and  nothing  that  we  do.  We  know 
the  law;  let  us  keep  it,  and  not  set  up  any  adverse 
conditions  by  our  thoughts  of  condemnation.  What- 
ever you  are  doing,  be  happy  in  it.  If  you  are  get- 
ting wrong  results,  do  not  believe  in  an  angry  God. 
You  are  getting  the  result  of  your  acts,  according  to 
your  faith.  Be  wise;  pronounce  nothing  evil,  and 
only  good  will  come.  Shall  we  call  everything 
good?  Yes.  If  the  savage  knew  this  law  he  could 
lift  himself  to  a  higher  consciousness  by  it.  We  get 
out  of  savagery  by  seeing  good. 

Have  faith  in  the  innate  goodness  of  all  men 
and  all  conditions.  Do  not  condemn,  no  matter 
how  great  the  provocation.  What  you  think,  Y°u 
create  in  your  own  consciousness.  Enlarge  your 


Faith  87 

range  of  vision,  and  you  may  see  good  in  what  now 
seems  evil.  God  is  good  and  God  is  all,  hence 
there  can  be  no  real  condition  but  the  good.  Why 
should  we  waste  our  time  fighting  evil?  If  we 
build  our  character  upon  faith,  understanding,  and 
love,  with  the  great  I  AM  as  the  focal  center,  we 
shall  become  pillars  in  the  temple  of  God. 


FAITH  AFFIRMATIONS 

(To  be  used  in  connection  with  Lesson  Eight.) 

"Now  faith  is  assurance  of  things  hoped  for,  a 
conviction  of  things  not  seen." 

Holding  continuously  to  the  reality  of  things 
spiritual  establishes  them  in  mind — they  become 
mental  substance. 

I  believe  in  the  presence  and  power  of  the  one 
Mind,  and  it  is  to  me  substantial  Intelligence. 

"According  to  your  faith  be  it  done  unto  you." 

My  doubts  and  fears  are  dissolved  and  dissi- 
pated; in  confidence  and  peace  I  rest  in  thy  un- 
changeable Law. 

"Great  is  thy  faith :  be  it  done  unto  thee  even  as 
thou  wilt." 

With  my  mind's  eye,  I  see  more  and  more  the 
reality  of  the  true  Ideas  ever  existing  in  Divine  Prin- 
ciple. 

"I  believe;  help  thou  mine  unbelief." 

Jesus  said,  "Have  faith  in  God." 

I  am  saved  from  pain  and  sorrow  through  my 
unswerving  faith  in  the  protection  and  care  of  God. 

"Lord,  Increase  our  faith." 

My  faith  grows  greater  day  by  day,  because  it 


88  Lesson  Eight 

is  planted  in  Truth,  and  through  it  all  the  mountains 
of  mortal  error  are  moved  into  the  sea  of  nothingness. 

The  understanding  of  Spirit  clarifies  my  faith. 

"I  know  him  whom  I  have  believed."  I  am  per- 
suaded that  he  is  able,  that  he  is  willing,  that  he  is 
desirous  of  giving  me  whatsoever  I  ask. 

My  faith  comprehends  the  beauty  of  wholeness. 

My  faith  is  of  God  and  in  God. 

"Go  thy  way;  thy  faith  hath  made  thee  whole." 


IMAGINATION 

LESSON  NINE 

The  teachings  about  the  things  of  the  Spirit  are 
said  to  be  mystical.  We  have  found  them  so  be- 
cause we  have  not  come  into  consciousness  of  the 
many  faculties  necessary  to  comprehend  Spirit. 
Victor  Hugo  said,  "There  are  no  occult  or  hidden 
truths;  everything  is  luminous  with  mind."  So  we 
find  in  the  study  of  Truth  that  what  is  called  mys- 
terious and  occult  is  simply  a  range  of  facts  that  man 
has  not  yet  explored.  When  he  expands  his  mind 
and  takes  in  a  larger  horizon,  he  sees  the  relation  of 
a  multitude  of  hitherto  unknown  laws,  which,  from 
his  former  viewpoint,  seemed  mysterious. 

Mind  manifests  through  faculties;  in  order  to 
comprehend  increasingly,  there  must  be  an  increase 
of  these  avenues.  That  man  has  latent  possibilities 
goes  without  argument,  and  that  there  is  a  limit  to 
the  ability  of  the  mind  is  unthinkable.  What  a  man 
imagines  he  can  do,  that  he  can  do.  It  is  a  question 
of  getting  about  it  in  the  right  way.  To  allow  the 
imagination  to  drift  in  daydreams  never  brings  any- 
thing to  pass.  Ideas  must  be  worked  up  into  living, 
breathing,  thinking  things.  Man  can  compress  into 
visibility  his  vagrant  ideas  as  the  chemist  liquefies  and 
makes  visible  the  invisible  atmosphere;  but  to  do 
this,  he  must,  like  the  chemist,  have  the  machinery. 

Physiology  says  that  to  think,  man  must  have 
brains.  However,  thinking  is  not  limited  to  material 

89 


90  Lesson  Nine 

cells,  but,  like  everything  else  in  the  universe,  has  a 
wide  range  of  expression.  There  are  brains  within 
brains,  and  cells  within  cells.  All  through  the  body 
are  brain  centers  whose  offices  have  not  yet  been 
determined.  Psychology  shows  that  these  nerve 
centers  are  acted  upon  by  invisible  forces.  Psychol- 
ogy teaches  that  man  has  what  is  called  a  subcon- 
scious mind,  and  that  it  transcends  the  conscious 
mind  in  knowledge  and  in  ability.  Jesus  Christ 
gives  us  this  still  higher  teaching  concerning  our  men- 
tal powers:  Man  has  a  mind  called  the  Lord, 
transcending  both  the  conscious  and  the  subcon- 
scious. Yet  the  harmonious  working  in  unity  of 
these  seemingly  three  minds  is  necessary  to  the  bring- 
ing forth  of  the  latent  possibilities  of  the  man. 

In  Truth  there  is  but  one  Mind,  in  which  all 
things  exist.  Accurately  speaking,  man  does  not 
have  three  minds,  nor  does  he  have  even  one  mind ; 
but  he  expresses  Mind  in  a  multitude  of  ways.  To 
believe  in  the  possession  of  a  mind,  and  that  it  is 
necessary  to  store  up  knowledge,  makes  living  bur- 
densome. This  is  why  very  intellectual  people  are 
often  unpractical  and  unsuccessful;  they  have  ac- 
cumulated more  knowledge  than  they  have  wisdom 
and  power  to  apply.  Like  the  miser  who  starves 
surrounded  by  his  gold,  these  perish  for  lack  of  real 
understanding.  Through  thinking  of  their  stored-up 
knowledge  as  a  personal  possession,  they  have  insu- 
lated it  from  the  original  fount  of  wisdom  and  life, 
and  it  has  consequently  become  stale  and  forceless. 

There  is  in  man  that  which,  when  opened,  will 
place  him  in  direct  contact  with  universal  Knowl- 
edge, and  he  can  instantly  and  continuously  draw 


Imagination  9 1 

for  anything  he  may  wish  to  know.  God  is  our 
fount  of  wisdom,  even  as  he  is  our  source  of  supply. 
The  understanding  of  the  Christ  Mind  reveals  that 
man  of  himself  knows  nothing.  Jesus,  who  devel- 
oped this  higher  consciousness,  claimed  that  all  his 
knowledge  and  power  came  direct  from  the  Father 
— "I  can  of  myself  do  nothing:  .  .  .  the  Father 
abiding  in  me  doeth  his  works." 

All  that  man  really  needs  is  the  quickening  and 
rounding  out  of  the  thinking  centers  in  his  conscious- 
ness; then  the  Divine  Mind  will  think  through  him. 
This  supreme  Mind  holds  man  at  its  center,  a  per- 
fect instrument  through  which  to  express  its  possi- 
bilities. The  writer  of  the  first  chapter  of  Genesis 
says  that  man  is  the  "image  and  likeness"  of  God. 
He  is  the  7-am-age,  or  the  identical  I  AM  of  God- 
Mind  in  expression.  God  looks  into  the  mirror  of 
the  universe  and  sees  himself  as  man;  he  gives  him- 
self to  man,  and  man  in  his  highest  is  God  manifest. 
"He  that  hath  seen  me  hath  seen  the  Father." 
Thus  God  gives  to  his  image  the  power  to  express  all 
that  he  is.  This  not  only  includes  man's  ability  to 
think,  but  also  the  power  to  shape  and  form  thought. 
This  formative  power  of  thought  requires  a  distinc- 
tive faculty,  which  is  called  the  "imagination." 
The  mind  makes  its  forms  in  a  way  similar  to  that  in 
which  women  make  biscuits.  First  is  the  gathering 
of  the  materials,  then  the  mixing,  then  the  biscuit 
cutting,  which  gives  shape  to  the  substance.  In 
thinking,  man  accumulates  a  mass  of  ideas  about 
substance  and  life,  and  with  his  imagination  he 
makes  them  into  forms. 

Whatever  we  mirror  in  our  minds  becomes  a 


92  Lesson  Nine 

living,  active  thing,  and  through  it  we  are  connected 
with  the  world  about  us.  Through  the  work  of  the 
imaging  faculty,  every  thought  makes  a  form,  and 
a  multitude  of  thoughts  make  a  multitude  of  forms. 
These  crowd  in  upon  each  other  around  the  central 
I-am-age,  and  appear  in  what  is  called  body.  Phys- 
iology says  that  all  the  organs  of  the  body  are  made 
up  of  cells,  and  that  every  cell  bears  the  form  and 
character  of  its  particular  organ.  The  liver  is  made 
of  a  multitude  of  little  livers,  the  heart  of  little  hearts, 
etc.  The  starting  point  is  an  idea,  and  through 
the  mechanism  of  the  mind  (often  erroneously  called 
the  mechanism  of  the  body)  man  forms  his  organ- 
ism. With  this  key  one  can  unlock  the  door  of  his 
temple,  and  in  mind  visit  all  its  various  rooms  and 
set  the  furniture  in  order. 

The  imagination  has  its  center  of  action  in  the 
front  brain;  it  uses  what  phrenology  calls  the  per- 
ceptive faculties.  It  is  really  the  author  of  these 
faculties;  size,  weight,  form,  color,  etc.,  are  its 
children.  When  it  flashes  its  light  into  the  cells  that 
make  up  these  organs,  they  at  once  respond  to  the 
thought,  and  out  of  the  invisible  ether  they  create 
forms  which  correspond  to  the  idea  held  in  the  imag- 
ination. If  the  idea  originates  in  Spirit,  the  creation 
is  harmonious  and  according  to  the  Law.  These 
centers  are  so  sensitive  and  receptive  to  thought  that 
they  take  impressions  from  without,  and  make  in  the 
ether  those  forms  which  correspond  to  the  impres- 
sions received.  This  is  an  inversion  of  the  creative 
Law,  which  is  that  all  creations  shall  have  their  pat- 
terns in  the  mind.  When  man  allows  his  imagina- 
tion to  run  on  in  a  lawless  way,  he  brings  about  such 


Imagination  93 

discord  in  mind  and  body  that  the  flood  of  error 
thought  submerges  his  understanding  and  he  is 
drowned  in  it.  "And  Jehovah  saw  that  the  wicked- 
ness of  man  was  great  in  the  earth,  and  that  every 
imagination  of  the  thoughts  of  his  heart  was  only 
evil  continually"  (Gen.  6:5). 

"And  I,  behold,  I  do  bring  the  flood  of  waters 
upon  the  earth,  to  destroy  all  flesh"  (Gen.  6:17). 

All  things,  including  the  mind,  work  from  center 
to  circumference.  A  knowledge  of  this  fact  puts 
man  on  his  guard,  and  he  directs  that  his  imagination 
shall  not  create  things  in  his  mind  which  have  been 
impressed  upon  him  from  without.  This  does  not 
imply  that  the  world  without  is  all  error,  or  that  all 
appearance  is  the  creation  of  mortal  mind;  it  means 
that  the  outer  is  not  the  safe  pattern  from  which  to 
make  the  members  of  the  body.  When  Moses  was 
instructed  by  the  Lord  to  furnish  the  tabernacle,  the 
command  was,  "See  .  .  .  that  thou  make  all  things 
according  to  the  pattern  that  was  showed  thee  in  the 
mount."  "The  mount"  is  the  place  of  high  under- 
standing in  Mind,  which  Jesus  called  the  kingdom 
of  God  within.  The  wise  metaphysician  resolves 
into  idea  each  mental  picture,  each  form  and  shape 
seen  in  visions,  dreams,  etc.  The  idea  is  the  founda- 
tion, the  real;  when  understood  and  molded  by  the 
power  of  the  word,  it  creates  or  re-creates  the  form 
at  the  direction  of  the  individual  I  AM.  This  simple 
law  developed  to  a  certain  degree,  makes  man  an 
adept  or  master.  Through  handling  the  cause  of 
things  he  attains  the  mastery  over  things,  and  instead 
of  giving  up  to  his  emotions  and  feelings,  he  controls 
them.  Instead  of  letting  his  imagination  run  riot, 


94  Lesson  Nine 

conjuring  up  all  sorts  of  situations,  he  holds  it  steady 
to  a  certain  set  of  ideas  which  he  wants  brought 
forth.  "Thou  wilt  keep  him  in  perfect  peace,  n>/iose 
imagination  is  stayed  on  thee"  (Isaiah  26:3, 
margin) . 

As  man  develops  in  understanding,  his  imagina- 
tion is  the  first  of  the  latent  faculties  to  quicken. 
Esau  represents  the  natural  man,  and  Jacob  a  new 
and  higher  concept  of  man  supplanting  him.  Hence 
Jacob  is  called  the  "Supplanter."  Historically,  he 
seems  a  trickster,  taking  advantage  of  those  of  less 
wisdom,  but  this  is  merely  to  show  how  the  higher 
principle  appropriates  the  good  everywhere.  Im- 
agination was  the  leading  faculty  in  Jacob's  mind. 
He  dreamed  of  a  ladder  reaching  from  earth  to 
heaven,  the  angels  of  God  ascending  and  descending 
upon  it.  This  is  prophecy  of  union  between  the 
ideal  and  its  manifestations,  between  Spirit  and 
body;  the  union  is  made  by  pure  thoughts  of  the 
Absolute — the  angels  of  Jacob's  dream.  Farther 
along  in  his  development  Jacob  awakened  all  of  his 
faculties,  represented  by  his  twelve  sons.  Joseph 
was  a  dreamer  and  an  interpreter  of  dreams.  He 
was  the  favorite  son  of  Jacob,  the  I  AM,  who  gave 
him  a  coat  of  many  colors.  This  is  all  representa- 
tive of  the  imaging  faculty  which  Joseph  typifies. 

The  history  of  Joseph  is  the  history  of  every 
man's  imagination  when  developed  under  the  Di- 
vine Law.  His  dreams  were  messages  from  God, 
and  God  interpreted  them  for  him;  his  life  is  the 
most  interesting  and  fascinating  romance  in  the 
Bible.  At  its  inception,  the  way  of  Joseph  was 
thorny,  but  through  his  obedience  to  the  Spirit  he 


Imagination  95 

reached  the  highest  place  in  the  king's  domain. 
This  shows  that  man  begins  the  development  of  the 
imagination  in  the  darkness  of  materiality  and  in  the 
depths  of  ignorance,  represented  by  Joseph  cast  into 
the  pit  and  sold  into  Egypt.  Through  spiritual  un- 
derstanding, the  "dreamer"  becomes  the  most  prac- 
tical son  of  the  family ;  by  following  his  dream  inter- 
pretations, multitudes  are  saved  from  starvation. 
The  individual  application  of  this  is:  Having  our 
attention  fixed  on  Spirit,  we  discern  the  ebb  and 
flow  of  the  forces  in  the  organism,  and  we  know  how 
to  conserve  and  husband  our  resources. 

Instead  of  treating  the  visions  of  the  night  as 
idle  dreams,  we  should  inquire  into  them,  seeking 
to  know  the  cause  and  the  meaning  of  every  mental 
picture.  Every  dream  has  origin  in  thought,  and 
every  thought  makes  a  mind  picture.  The  study  of 
dreams  and  visions  is  an  important  one,  because  it  is 
through  these  mental  pictures  that  the  Lord  com- 
municates with  man  in  a  certain  stage  of  his  unfold- 
ment.  Solomon  was  instructed  in  dreams.  "In 
Gibeon  Jehovah  appeared  to  Solomon  in  a  dream 
by  night;  and  God  said,  Ask  what  I  shall  give 
thee."  In  Job  33 : 15,  16,  we  read,  "In  a  dream,  in 
a  vision  of  the  night,  When  deep  sleep  falleth  upon 
men,  In  slumberings  upon  the  bed ;  Then  he  openeth 
the  ears  of  men,  And  sealeth  their  instruction." 
"Then  was  the  secret  revealed  unto  Daniel  in  a  vis- 
ion of  the  night."  Joseph,  the  father  of  Jesus,  was 
told  in  a  dream  to  take  the  young  child  and  go  down 
into  Egypt.  Peter  was  shown  his  intolerance  in  a 
vision,  and  Paul  was  obedient  to  the  "heavenly 
vision."  All  the  great  and  wise  in  every  age  have 


96  Lesson  Nine 

been  instructed  by  God  in  dreams  and  visions. 
"Where  there  is  no  vision,  the  people  cast  off  re- 
straint" (Prov.  29:18). 

Every  form  and  thing,  whether  in  the  ether  or  on 
the  earth,  represents  some  idea  or  mental  attitude. 
The  idea  is  first  projected  into  the  invisible  ether, 
and  afterward  formed  in  consciousness.  The  mind 
of  man  sees  all  things  through  thought  forms  made 
by  the  imagination.  The  lover  idealizes  the  object 
of  his  affection,  and  is  often  disappointed  on  close 
acquaintance.  We  are  always  creating  ideals  that 
have  existence  in  our  minds  alone.  A  true  story  is 
told  of  a  sailor  who  went  on  a  long  voyage  and  left 
his  affianced  behind.  He  thought  of  her  continu- 
ously, and  often  saw  her  in  his  dreams.  Finally  he 
began  to  see  and  talk  to  her  in  his  waking  state,  and 
she  told  him  many  remarkable  things.  She  said  it 
was  her  soul  that  visited  him;  that  her  body  was  in 
her  English  home,  awaiting  his  return.  After  some 
twenty  years  he  arrived  at  home,  expecting  a  wel- 
come from  his  loved  one.  He  was  dumbfounded  to 
learn  that  she  was  married,  had  a  family,  and  had 
forgotten  him.  Out  of  his  own  mind  substance  he 
had  created  the  object  of  his  affection,  and  she  had 
faithfully  reflected  all  his  thoughts  about  her. 

Through  the  power  of  the  imagination  we  im- 
press upon  the  body  the  concepts  of  the  mind. 
Birthmarks  have  long  been  recognized  as  the  effect 
of  the  mother's  mind,  and  this  mental  sympathy  does 
not  end  with  birth.  Here  are  actual  occurrences: 
A  lady  watched  her  little  daughter  pass  through  a 
heavy  iron  gate.  The  gate  swung  shut  and  the 
mother  imagined  that  it  caught  and  crushed  the  little 


Imagination  97 

one's  fingers.  But  the  child  had  withdrawn  her  fin- 
gers before  the  gate  struck.  The  mother  felt  the 
pain  in  her  own  hand,  and  the  next  day  she  found  a 
dark  streak  across  her  fingers  where  she  imagined  the 
child's  were  crushed.  In  a  certain  secret  society  ini- 
tiation, the  candidate  was  told  that  the  word  "Cow- 
ard" was  to  be  branded  upon  his  back  with  a  red-hot 
iron.  A  piece  of  ice  was  used  instead,  but  the  prom- 
ised brand  arose  in  blistered  letters. 

We  could  cite  cases  without  number  to  prove 
the  power  of  the  imagination  in  forming  and  trans- 
forming the  body.  Also,  one  mind  can  suggest  to 
another  and  produce  any  desired  condition,  if  there 
be  mental  receptivity.  This  can  be  done  most  ef- 
fectively through  the  hypnotic  state,  but  hypnosis  is 
not  always  necessary.  Experiments  prove  that  we 
are  constantly  suggesting  all  sorts  of  things  to  one 
another,  and  getting  results  according  to  the  inten- 
sity of  the  imagination.  Thus  disease  is  reflected 
into  susceptible  minds  by  people  merely  talking 
about  disease  as  an  awful  reality. 

A  man  can  imagine  he  has  some  evil  condition 
in  body  or  affairs,  and  through  the  imaging  law  he 
builds  it  up  until  it  becomes  manifest.  On  the  other 
hand,  he  can  use  the  same  power  to  make  good  ap- 
pear on  every  side.  The  marks  of  old  age  can  be 
erased  from  the  body  by  mentally  seeing  it  youthful. 
If  you  want  to  be  healthy,  do  not  imagine  so  vain  a 
thing  as  weakness  and  decrepitude.  Make  your 
body  perfect  by  seeing  perfection  in  it.  The  tran- 
sient patching  up  with  lotions  and  external  appli- 
cations is  foolish ;  the  work  must  be  a  mental  trans- 


98  Lesson  Nine 

formation.    "Be  ye  transformed  by  the  renewing  of 
your  mind." 

The  highest  and  best  work  of  the  imagination  is 
the  transformation  it  works  in  character.  Imagine 
that  you  are  one  with  the  Principle  of  Good  and  you 
will  become  good.  To  imagine  oneself  perfect  fixes 
the  idea  of  perfection  in  the  invisible  mind  substance, 
and  the  mental  forces  at  once  begin  the  work  of 
bringing  forth  perfection. 

Paul  saw  this  wonderful  law  at  work  in  character 
forming  through  imitating  Christ,  "But  we  all,  with 
unveiled  face  beholding  as  in  a  mirror  the  glory  of 
the  Lord,  are  transformed  into  the  same  image  from 
glory  to  glory,  even  as  from  the  Lord  the  Spirit." 


PERFECTION  IN  FORM  ESTABLISHED 

(To  be  used  in  connection  with  Lesson  Nine.) 

I  see  my  countenance  in  its  divine  perfection. 

Thou  wilt  keep  him  in  perfect  peace  whose  im- 
agination is  stayed  on  Thee. 

I  see  perfection  in  all  forms  and  shapes. 

His  Son  is  the  brightness  of  His  glory,  and  the 
express  image  of  His  person. 

I  see  the  light  of  the  Christ  Consciousness  al- 
ways. 

I  am  formed  anew  every  day  in  my  mind  and 
body. 

Be  ye  renewed  in  the  spirit  of  your  mind. 

My  spirit  is  quickened  in  Christ. 

In  a  dream,  in  a  vision  of  the  night  ...  he 
openeth  the  ears  of  men,  And  sealeth  their  instruc- 
tion.—Job  33:15,  16. 

I  know  the  reality  back  of  the  shadows. 


WILL  AND  UNDERSTANDING 

LESSON  TEN 

"If  any  man  willeth  to  do  his  will,  he  shall  know 
of  the  teaching"  (John  7:17). 

Man  manifests  that  which  exists  eternally  in 
Being.  We  talk  about  the  faculties  of  man's  mind 
as  if  they  belong  to  the  individual  and  have  origin 
in  him.  Man  exists  in  the  one  invisible  Mind.  He 
may  assume  to  have  a  mind  of  his  own,  but  his  origin 
and  destiny  are  in  the  original  Mind. 

Primal  causes  are  complete,  finished,  absolute. 
All  that  man  manifests  has  its  origin  in  a  Cause 
which  we  name  Divine  Mind,  Spirit,  God.  This 
being  true  in  logic  and  intuition,  it  is  not  a  difficult 
matter  to  arrive  at  the  conclusion  that  the  manifes- 
tation proves  the  character  of  the  cause.  In  dealing 
with  the  faculties  of  man,  the  relation  between  them 
and  the  one  Mind  should  not  be  lost  sight  of. 
There  is  but  one  Mind,  and  that  Mind  cannot  be 
separated  or  divided,  because,  like  the  principle  of 
mathematics,  it  is  indivisible.  All  that  we  can  say 
of  the  one  Mind  is  that  it  is  absolute,  and  that  all 
its  manifestations  are  in  essence  like  unto  itself.  This 
brings  us  to  the  true  estimate  of  man,  and  when  we 
speak  of  spiritual  man,  or  Christ  Man,  or  the  Son 
of  God,  we  refer  to  this  original  expression  of  Di- 
vine Mind. 

In  analyzing  these  faculties  and  in  establishing 

99 


100  Lesson  Ten 

their  relation  in  the  individual  consciousness,  we 
should  clearly  understand  that  they  are  never  sepa- 
rated from  their  Principle,  the  Divine  Mind.  In  the 
text  quoted  above,  Jesus  refers  to  two  of  the  powers 
of  man,  and  brings  out  a  certain  phase  of  their  re- 
lation. "Will"  and  "know"  designate  what  we 
term  the  will  and  the  understanding  faculties  of 
mind.  Through  appropriation,  through  expansion 
and  growth  in  consciousness,  will  and  understand- 
ing would  seem  to  have  their  source  in  individual 
man.  But  however  adapted  by  man,  they  can  never 
be  divorced  from  the  Mind  of  Being  in  which  they 
exist  as  essential  members  of  its  wholeness. 

Self-consciousness  is  like  an  eddy  in  the  ocean — 
all  the  elements  that  are  found  in  the  ocean  are  also 
found  in  the  eddy,  and  every  eddy  may,  in  due 
course,  receive  and  give  forth  all  that  is  in  the  ocean. 
As  the  will  of  God,  man  represents  I  AM  identity. 
This  is  self-consciousness,  freedom  to  act  without 
dictation  of  any  kind,  selfhood  without  conscious- 
ness of  cause,  the  power  to  make  or  break  without 
limitation,  constructive  and  destructive  ability  with  a 
universe  of  workable  potentialities.  The  will  is  the 
man.  Without  absolute  freedom  of  will,  man 
would  be  an  automaton.  If  his  will  were  restricted 
in  the  least  degree  on  any  side,  he  would  not  be  per- 
fectly free.  But  we  know  that  God  is  the  Great 
Unlimited,  and  man,  his  "image  and  likeness,"  must 
be  of  the  same  character;  consequently  man  has  the 
same  freedom  that  God  has  to  act  in  the  fulfillment 
of  desire.  God  does  not  dictate  man's  acts,  although 
he  may  instruct  and  draw  him  through  love  away 
from  error.  The  idea  that  God  makes  man  do  cer- 


Will  and  Understanding  101 

tain  things  cannot  be  true  in  a  single  instance,  be- 
cause if  it  were,  man  would  not  be  a  free  agent.  If 
God  interfered  with  man's  will  in  some  things,  it 
would  follow  that  he  could  interfere  in  any  and  all 
things.  Logic  and  observation  clearly  reveal  the 
freedom  of  man  in  everything. 

Creative  thought  uses  the  will  to  build  up  indi- 
vidual consciousness.  The  Lord  God,  or  Jehovah 
of  Genesis,  is  the  original  "I  will  be  what  I  will  to 
be."  In  mind,  both  Jehovah  and  Jesus  mean  I  AM. 
I  AM  is  man's  self -identity.  I  AM  is  the  center 
around  which  man's  system  revolves.  When  the  I 
AM  is  established  in  a  certain  understanding  of  its 
Principle,  it  is  guided  in  its  acts,  and  they  are  in  har- 
mony with  Divine  Law.  This  is  the  union  of  will 
and  understanding.  In  the  Scripture,  these  are  des- 
ignated as  Ephraim  and  Manasseh,  sons  of  Joseph. 
Their  allotment  in  the  Promised  Land  was  joined, 
indicating  that  these  faculties  work  in  the  body  from 
a  single  brain  center.  This  center  is  in  the  fore- 
head. 

The  will  should  never  be  retarded  in  its  devel- 
opment, but  should  be  strengthened  along  all  lines. 
The  idea  of  breaking  the  will  of  children  is  wholly 
erroneous.  The  perfect  man  is  produced  by  round- 
ing out  the  will  and  joining  it  to  the  understanding. 
The  idea  of  giving  up  the  will  should  not  include  the 
thought  of  weakening  it,  or  causing  it  to  become  in 
any  way  less ;  it  properly  means  that  the  will  is  being 
instructed  how  to  act  for  the  best.  Do  not  act  until 
you  know  how  to  act.  "Look  before  you  leap." 
This  does  not  imply  that  one  shall  be  inactive  and 
indefinite,  waiting  for  understanding,  as  do  many 


102  Lesson   Ten 

people  who  are  afraid  to  act  because  they  may  possi- 
bly do  the  wrong  thing ;  it  means  that  understanding 
will  be  quickened  and  the  will  strengthened  by  the 
confidence  which  comes  to  it  as  a  result  of  knowl- 
edge. 

To  strengthen  the  will,  and  at  the  same  time  dis- 
cipline it  along  right  lines,  requires  an  understanding 
nothing  less  than  divine.  But  man  can  balance  his 
will  and  his  understanding;  when  he  does  this  he 
will  always  do  the  right  thing  at  the  right  time. 
Nearly  every  mistake  is  the  result  of  will  acting  with- 
out the  cooperation  of  its  brother,  understanding. 
When  the  will  is  permitted  to  act  on  its  own  account, 
man  becomes  emotional  and  willful.  These  states 
of  consciousness  lead  to  all  kinds  of  bodily  discords. 
Willfulness  makes  tenseness,  and  a  tense  mind  ties 
knots  in  the  nerves,  muscles,  and  tendons  of  the  whole 
organism.  The  metaphysician,  observing  these  con- 
ditions, treats  for  relaxation  of  will  and  for  a  gen- 
eral letting  go  of  the  whole  system.  The  universal 
treatment  for  this  condition  given  by  Jesus  Christ  is, 
"Not  my  will,  but  thine,  be  done."  This  surrender 
causes  personal  will  to  "let  go,"  and  a  unification  of 
man's  will  with  God's  will  takes  place.  When  this 
is  accomplished,  all  goes  well. 

Willful  people  often  complain  of  a  feeling  like 
that  produced  by  a  tight  band  around  the  head. 
This  is  the  pressure  of  thought  substance  which  the 
will  has  laid  hold  of  and  is  clinging  to  with  centrip- 
etal force.  In  all  such  cases,  and,  in  fact,  in  every 
sense  of  pressure,  treat  against  personal  willfulness 
and  affirm  the  divine  freedom. 

Every  organ  of  the  body  is  affected  by  the  action 


Will  and  Understanding  1 03 

of  the  will,  and  when  this  faculty  becomes  fixed  in  a 
certain  attitude,  it  holds  the  whole  body  to  its  central 
affirmation.  The  determination  to  have  one's  own 
way  regardless  of  the  rights  of  others,  stops  the  free 
action  of  the  heart,  and  the  stomach  is  sympathetic- 
ally affected.  Persons  affected  in  these  ways  sel- 
dom realize  that  they  have  a  set  determination  as  to 
how  things  shall  be  done  in  their  lives,  and  they  are 
sometimes  slow  in  accepting  the  higher  understand- 
ing which  is  necessary  to  the  untangling  of  mistakes 
made  by  the  ignorant  will.  Contrariness  is  another 
name  for  perverted  will.  An  idea  of  self  and  its 
needs  takes  possession  of  the  mind,  and  the  will  is 
used  to  carry  out  this  short-sighted  policy.  The  re- 
sult is  a  belittling  of  the  whole  man.  People  who 
are  contentious  for  their  personal  rights,  place  them- 
selves in  bondage  to  material  conditions  and  stop 
spiritual  growth. 

How  shall  we  bring  to  bear  the  Divine  Will? 
By  understanding;  by  universal  Wisdom;  by  af- 
firming, "Not  my  will,  but  thine,  be  done."  God  is 
potential,  unformed  will ;  man  is  manifest  God- Will, 
or  good- will.  When  man  links  his  will  with  the 
principle  of  force  he  has  superior  executive  capac- 
ity. He  swiftly  brings  forth  faculties  which,  under 
the  slow  action  of  mortality,  would  take  ages  to 
develop. 

There  is  a  knowing  quality  in  Divine  Mind. 
God  is  Supreme  Knowing.  That  which  compre- 
hends in  man  is  Understanding;  it  knows  and  com- 
pares in  Wisdom.  Its  comparisons  are  not  made  in 
the  realm  of  form,  but  in  the  realm  of  ideas.  It 
knows  how  to  accomplish  things.  We  may  know 


104  Lesson   Ten 

without  experience.  The  human  family  has  learned 
by  hard  knocks  that  experience  is  a  severe  school- 
master. In  the  allegory  of  Adam  and  Eve,  we  have 
a  picture  of  man  falling  under  the  sway  of  the  ser- 
pent and  choosing  to  learn  by  experience.  One  of 
the  esoteric  meanings  of  the  serpent  is  "experience." 
All  the  bitter  lessons  that  come  through  blundering 
ignorance  can  be  evaded  when  men  declare  their 
Divine  Understanding  and  in  it  follow  the  Divine 
Guidance. 

For  all  willfulness,  the  treatment  should  be  af- 
firmations of  spiritual  understanding  The  will  is 
not  to  be  broken  but  disciplined.  The  absolute 
freedom  of  the  individual  must  be  maintained  at  all 
hazards.  God  is  the  one  Principle;  we  are  all  as 
free  to  use  God  as  we  are  free  to  use  the  principles 
of  mathematics  and  music.  The  principle  never  in- 
terferes, but  if  it  is  to  be  rightly  applied  we  must  de- 
velop uderstanding.  Freedom  leads  to  many  errors, 
but  since  it  is  a  part  of  Being,  man  must  learn  to 
use  it  properly;  he  must  learn  that  the  freedom  of 
the  law  means  control  and  conservation,  not  lust 
and  license. 

We  should  be  careful  not  to  enter  into  any  heal- 
ing system  which  interferes  with  freedom.  Hypno- 
tism is  not  real  healing.  Any  system  that  suppresses 
the  will  is  radically  wrong.  It  is  the  work  of  the 
true  healer  to  instruct  the  patient,  to  show  cause  and 
remedy  from  the  viewpoint  of  spiritual  understand- 
ing. All  other  methods  are  temporary.  The  old 
states  of  mind  will  come  again  into  action  unless  the 
causing  thought  is  uncovered  and  removed.  A  man 
may  have  a  paralyzed  arm  through  selfish  desire  for 


mil  and  Understanding  105 

money,  and  though  he  may  find  temporary  relief  in 
mere  mental  suggestions  of  health,  or  hypnotism,  he 
will  never  get  permanent  healing  until  he  under- 
stands the  Divine  Law  governing  possessions,  and 
conforms  thereto. 

There  are  people  who  claim  they  are  being  spir- 
itually developed  through  mediumship.  This  is 
error.  If  you  believe  that  you  are  under  the  control 
of  another  will,  if  you  give  up  to  another  will,  your 
own  will  is  gradually  weakened.  If  you  continue 
to  submit  to  the  domination  of  another,  you  will 
finally  lose  control  of  your  own  life.  The  will  must 
be  strengthened  by  being  constantly  used  in  Divine 
Understanding.  Mesmerism  weakens  the  will. 
Spiritual  understanding  quickens  and  makes  alive. 
God  never  puts  any  one  to  sleep.  "Awake,  thou 
that  sleepest, .  .  .  and  Christ  shall  shine  upon  thee." 

Never  say,  "I  don't  know;"  "I  don't  under- 
stand." Claim  your  Christ  understanding  at  all 
times,  and  declare,  "I  am  not  under  any  spell  of 
human  ignorance.  I  am  one  with  Infinite  Under- 
standing." The  accumulation  of  ignorance  through 
association  with  ignorant  minds  can  be  dissolved  by 
the  Word.  You  may  know  by  simply  holding  that 
you  know.  This  is  not  egotism,  but  spiritual  know- 
ing. When  you  declare  Divine  Understanding,  you 
sometimes  meet  your  old  line  of  thought  and  are  dis- 
appointed. Right  then  continue  to  hold  for  know- 
ing. Judge  not  by  appearances.  Do  not  act  until 
you  get  the  assurance;  and  if  you  keep  in  the  Spirit 
by  affirmation,  the  assurance  will  come.  Will  it 
come  by  voice?  No;  you  know  through  the  faculty 
of  intuition.  Divine  Knowing  is  direct  influx  of 


106  Lesson  Ten 

mind  of  God  with  mind  of  man.  Sometimes  we  are 
taught  by  symbols,  visions,  etc.,  but  this  is  only  one 
way  the  Divine  Mind  has  of  expressing  itself. 
When  the  mind  deals  with  God  ideals  it  asks  for 
no  symbols,  visible  or  invisible,  but  rests  on  pure 
knowing.  It  was  in  this  consciousness  that  Jesus 
said:  "Father,  I  thank  thee  that  thou  heardest 
me.  And  I  knew  that  thou  hearest  me  always." 

A  very  practical  application  of  the  Truth  about 
the  will  can  be  made  in  the  matter  of  self-control. 
Those  who  try  to  get  control  through  the  personal 
will  fall  short.  We  should  be  free  to  express  all 
that  we  are.  If  you  are  afraid  of  any  force  within 
you,  your  fear  leads  to  suppression.  In  the  true  self- 
control,  the  will  and  the  understanding  both  play  a 
part.  The  feelings  and  appetites  and  passions  must 
be  disciplined.  They  are  not  merely  to  be  held  in 
check  by  the  will,  but  they  are  to  be  lifted  up  and 
developed  through  the  Christ  Mind. 

The  problem  of  self-control  is  never  settled  until 
all  that  man  is  comes  into  touch  with  the  Divine 
Will  and  Understanding.  We  must  understand  all 
of  our  forces  before  we  can  establish  them  in  har- 
mony. This  overcoming  is  easy  if  you  go  about  it  in 
the  right  way.  But  if  you  try  to  take  dominion 
through  will  force  and  suppression,  you  will  find  it 
hard  and  will  never  accomplish  any  permanent  re- 
sults. Get  your  I  AM  centered  in  God,  and  from  that 
place  of  Truth  speak  true  words.  In  this  way  you 
will  gain  real  spiritual  mastery  and  raise  your  will 
consciousness  from  the  human  to  the  Divine. 

The  will  plays  the  leading  part  in  all  systems 
of  thought  concentration.  The  simple  statement,  "I 


Will  and  Understanding  1 07 

will  to  be  well,"  gathers  the  forces  of  mind  and  body 
about  the  central  idea  of  wholeness,  and  the  will 
holds  the  center  just  as  long  as  the  I  AM  continues  its 
affirmation.  No  one  ever  died  until  he  let  go  his 
will,  and  thousands  live  on  and  on  through  the  force 
of  a  determined  will. 

The  "devil"  which  we  are  to  overcome  is  the 
adverse  will  which  seeks  to  master  man  in  the  with- 
out. This  "adversary"  troubles  us  because  we  strive 
to  maintain  personal  freedom  instead  of  submitting 
to  Divine  Guidance.  Self-confidence  is  a  virtue 
when  founded  on  the  Truth  of  Being,  but  when  it 
arises  from  the  personal  consciousness  it  keeps  man 
from  his  dominion.  Are  you  trying  just  from  your- 
self to  be  free  from  the  traditions  of  the  outer  world, 
or  are  you  resting  in  the  understanding  and  asssur- 
ance  that  you  are  a  son  of  God?  To  know  yourself 
as  a  son  of  God  is  to  overcome  the  "devil" — the 
personal  self.  The  "devil"  makes  you  believe  that 
you  are  the  son  of  the  flesh.  To  overcome,  say,  "I 
put  Satan  behind  me  by  the  realization  that  God  is 
my  Father.  I  am  centered  in  Him,  and  all  things 
are  under  His  dominion.  I  live  in  the  Infinite  Power 
that  produces  all  self-control.  I  have  no  necessity 
for  controlling  people.  Events  and  people  are  con- 
trolled by  law.  There  is  an  eternal  law  of  justice. 
I  am  one  with  that  law  and  I  rest  in  it." 

Among  the  disciples  of  Jesus,  Matthew  repre- 
sents the  will,  and  Thomas,  the  understanding. 
Matthew  was  the  tax-gatherer  who  sat  at  the  gate, 
representing  the  executive  part  of  the  government; 
so  the  will  is  the  executive  faculty  of  the  mind,  and 
carries  out  the  edicts  of  the  I  AM.  All  thoughts 


108  Lessson  Ten 

that  go  in  or  out  of  man's  consciousness  pass  the  gate 
at  which  sits  the  will,  and  if  that  will  understands 
its  office,  the  character  and  value  of  every  thought 
is  inquired  into,  and  a  certain  tribute  exacted  for  the 
benefit  of  the  whole  man. 

Thomas,  the  understanding,  is  represented  as 
under  discipline;  that  is,  not  yet  in  the  light  of  the 
Spirit.  The  understanding,  in  its  first  steps  in  Truth, 
wants  its  lessons  and  accompanying  demonstrations 
to  be  couched  in  terms  like  those  in  the  world  with- 
out. When  the  Christ  showed  himself  to  Thomas, 
the  latter  said  that  he  would  not  believe  unless  he 
could  see  the  print  of  the  nails  and  feel  the  wound 
in  the  side  of  the  Lord.  This  double  proof  was 
given  him,  and  Jesus  said,  "Be  not  faithless,  but  be- 
lieving." Thomas  was  then  spiritually  awakened 
and  he  made  the  acknowledgment:  "My  Lord  and 
my  God." 

Those  people  who  are  being  educated  in  Truth 
through  the  written  and  spoken  word  will  finally 
arrive  at  that  place  where  the  true  light  from  the 
Spirit  will  dawn  upon  them,  and  they  will,  like 
Thomas,  see  with  spiritual  understanding,  and  have 
proof  of  the  reality  of  the  Christ  Mind. 


THE  ESTABLISHMENT  OF  WILL  AND  UNDER- 
STANDING 

(To  be  used  in  connection  with  Lesson  Ten.) 
My  understanding  is  established  in  Divine  Mind. 
"You  shall  know  the  truth,  and  the  truth  shall 
make  you  free." 

The  will  of  God  is  ever  uppermost  in  my  con- 
sciousness. 


Will  and  Understanding  1 09 

"Not  my  will,  but  thine,  be  done." 

I  firmly  believe  in  the  Guiding  Intelligence 
directing  all  my  thoughts. 

"There  is  a  spirit  in  man,  And  the  breath  of  the 
Almighty  giveth  them  understanding." 

The  willfulness  and  stubbornness  of  the  flesh 
have  no  power  in  me.  I  am  obedient  unto  the  Spirit 
and  receptive  to  all  its  secret  thoughts. 

"Not  ...  of  the  will  of  the  flesh,  nor  of  the 
will  of  man,  but  of  God." 

I  am  willing  to  change  my  mind. 

"Be  ye  transformed  by  the  renewing  of  your 
mind." 

The  Christ  of  God  is  born  in  my  consciousness 
and  I  am  glorified  in  my  understanding. 


JUDGMENT   AND   JUSTICE 

LESSON  ELEVEN 

Judge  not,  that  ye  be  not  judged.  For  with  what  judg- 
ment ye  judge,  ye  shall  be  judged :  and  with  what  measure 
ye  mete,  it  shall  be  measured  unto  you. — Matt.  7:1,  2. 

And  thou  shall  put  in  the  breastplate  of  judgment  the 
Urim  and  the  Thummim;  and  they  shall  be  upon  Aaron's 
heart,  when  he  goeth  in  before  Jehovah:  and  Aaron  shall 
bear  the  judgment  of  the  children  of  Israel  upon  his  heart 
before  Jehovah  continually. — Exodus  28:30. 

Urim  and  Thummim  (Lights  and  Perfections).  These 
were  the  sacred  symbols  (worn  upon  the  breastplate  of  the 
High  Priest,  upon  his  heart)  by  which  God  gave  oracular 
responses  for  the  guidance  of  his  people  in  temporal  matters. 
What  they  were,  is  unknown ;  they  are  introduced  in  Exodus 
without  explanation,  as  if  familiar  to  the  Israelites  of  that 
day.  Modern  Egyptology  supplies  us  with  a  clue;  it  tells 
us  that  Egyptian  high  priests  in  every  town,  who  are  also  its 
magistrates,  wore  round  their  necks  a  jeweled  gem  bearing 
on  one  side  the  image  of  Truth,  and  on  the  other  sometimes 
that  of  Justice,  sometimes  that  of  Light.  When  the  accused 
was  acquitted,  the  judge  held  out  the  image  for  him  to  kiss. 
In  the  final  judgment,  Osiris  wears  around  his  neck  the 
jeweled  Justice  and  Truth.  The  LXX.  translates  Urim 
and  Thummin  by  "Light  and  Truth."  Some  scholars  sup- 
pose that  they  were  the  twelve  stones  of  the  breastplate; 
others  that  they  were  two  additional  stones  concealed  in  its 
fold.  Josephus  adds  to  these  the  two  sardonyx  buttons, 
worn  on  the  shoulders,  which  he  says  emitted  luminous  rays 
when  the  response  was  favorable;  but  the  precise  mode  in 
which  the  oracles  were  given  is  lost  in  obscurity. — Bible 
Glossary  of  Antiquities. 

The  law  as  given  by  Moses,  is  for  guidance  of 
110 


Judgment  and  Justice  1 1 1 

man  in  the  evolution  of  his  faculties.  The  figures, 
personalities,  and  symbols  represent  potentialities  de- 
veloped and  undeveloped  on  various  planes  of  con- 
sciousness. The  High  Priest  stands  for  spiritual 
man  officiating  between  God  and  mortal  man.  The 
breastplate  in  an  armor  protects  the  most  vital  part, 
the  heart.  The  heart  is  love,  the  affectional  con- 
sciousness in  man;  it  may  be  subject  to  the  force  of 
weak  sympathy,  unless  balanced  by  another  power  in 
which  is  discrimination,  or  judgment. 

The  breastplate  had  on  it  twelve  precious  stones, 
representing  the  twelve  tribes  of  Israel.  This 
clearly  means  that  the  twelve  faculties  of  the  mind 
must  be  massed  at  the  great  brain  center  called  the 
solar  plexus.  It  means  that  all  the  intelligence  of 
man's  faculties  must  be  brought  into  play  in  the 
final  judgments  of  the  mind.  The  Urim  and  Thum- 
mim  (Lights  and  Perfections) ,  under  the  Egyptian 
symbology,  "Truth  and  Justice,"  are  the  oracular 
edicts  of  Divine  Mind  which  are  intuitively  ex- 
pressed as  a  logical  sequence  of  the  Divine  Prin- 
ciple, Truth  and  Justice. 

A  modern  metaphysician  would  interpret  all 
this  as  the  omnipresence  of  Divine  Mind  in  its  per- 
fect idea,  Christ.  The  Truth  is  ready  at  all  times 
to  give  judgment  and  justice.  As  God  is  Love,  so 
God  is  Justice.  These  are  in  Divine  Mind  in  unity, 
but  are  made  manifest  in  man's  consciousness  too 
often  in  diversity.  It  is  through  the  Christ  Mind  in 
the  heart  that  they  are  unified.  When  justice  and 
love  meet  at  the  heart  center,  there  is  balance,  poise, 
and  righteousness.  When  judgment  is  divorced  from 
love,  and  works  from  the  head  alone,  there  goes 


1  12  Lesson  £/even 

forth  the  human  cry  for  justice.  In  his  mere  human 
judgment,  man  is  hard  and  heartless;  punishment 
is  meted  out  without  consideration  of  motive  or 
cause,  and  justice  goes  awry. 

Good  judgment,  like  every  other  faculty  of  the 
mind,  is  developed  from  Principle.  In  its  perfection 
it  is  expressed  through  man's  mind,  with  all  its  abso- 
lute relations  uncurtailed.  Man  has  the  right  con- 
cept of  judgment,  and  ideally  the  judges  of  our 
courts  have  that  unbiased  and  unprejudiced  dis- 
crimination which  ever  exists  in  the  Absolute.  A 
prejudiced  judge  is  abhorred,  and  one  who  allows 
himself  to  be  moved  by  his  sympathies  is  not  con- 
sidered safe. 

The  metaphysician  finds  it  necessary  to  place  his 
judgment  in  the  Absolute  in  order  to  demonstrate  its 
supreme  power.  This  is  accomplished  by  first  de- 
claring that  one's  judgment  is  spiritual  and  not  ma- 
terial; that  its  origin  is  in  God;  that  all  its  con- 
clusions are  based  in  Truth,  and  that  they  are  abso- 
lutely free  from  prejudice,  false  sympathy,  or  mortal 
ignorance.  This  gives  a  working  center  from  which 
the  ego  or  I  AM  begins  to  set  in  order  its  own 
thought  world.  The  habit  of  judging  others,  even 
in  the  most  insignificant  matters  of  daily  life,  must 
be  discontinued.  "Judge  not,  that  ye  be  not  judged,"  / 
said  Jesus.  The  law  of  judgment  works  out  in 
a  multitude  of  directions,  and  if  we  do  not  observe 
it  in  small  things,  we  shall  find  ourselves  failing  in 
large. 

Judging  from  the  plane  of  the  mortal,  leads  into 
condemnation,  and  condemnation  is  always  followed 
by  affixing  a  penalty.  We  see  faults  in  others,  and 


Judgment  and  Justice  1 1 3 

pass  judgment  upon  them  without  considering  mo- 
tives or  circumstances.  Our  judgment  is  often 
biased  and  prejudiced;  yet  we  do  not  hesitate  to 
think  of  some  form  of  punishment  to  be  meted  out 
to  the  guilty  one.  He  may  be  guilty  or  not  guilty ; 
his  guilt  or  innocence  rests  in  the  Divine  Law,  and 
we  have  no  right  to  pass  judgment.  In  our  igno- 
rance, we  are  creating  thought  forces  that  will  react 
upon  us.  "With  what  judgment  ye  judge,  ye  shall 
be  judged."  "With  what  measure  ye  mete,  it  shall 
be  measured  unto  you."  Whatever  thought  you  send 
out,  will  come  back  to  you.  This  is  an  unchange- 
able law  of  thought  action.  A  man  may  be  just  in 
all  his  dealings,  yet  if  he  condemns  others  for  their 
injustice,  that  thought  action  will  bring  him  into  un- 
just conditions;  so  it  is  not  safe  to  judge  except  in 
the  Absolute.  Jesus  said  that  he  judged  no  man  on 
his  own  account,  but  in  the  Father;  that  is,  he 
judged  in  the  Principle.  This  is  the  stand  which 
every  one  must  take — resting  judgment  of  others  in 
the  Absolute.  When  this  is  done  the  tendency  to 
condemn  will  grow  less  and  less,  until  man,  seeing  his 
fellow  man  as  God  sees  him,  will  leave  him  to  the 
law  of  the  Absolute  in  all  cases  where  he  seems 
unjust. 

The  great  judgment  day  of  Scripture  indicates 
a  time  of  separation  between  the  true  and  the  false. 
There  is  no  warrant  for  the  belief  that  God  sends 
man  to  everlasting  punishment.  Modern  interpreters 
of  the  Scripture  say  that  the  "hellfire"  referred  to 
by  Jesus  means  simply  a  state  in  which  purification 
is  taking  place. 

The  word  "hell"  is  not  translated  with  clearness 


1 1 4  Lesson  Eleven 

sufficient  to  represent  the  various  meanings  of  the 
word  in  the  original  language.  There  are  three 
words  from  which  "hell"  is  derived:  sheol,  "the  un- 
seen state;"  hades,  "the  unseen  world;  and  ge- 
henna,  "valley  of  Hinnom"  These  are  used  in  the 
various  relations,  nearly  all  of  them  allegorical.  In  a 
sermon,  Archdeacon  Farrar  said :  "There  would  be 
the  proper  teaching  about  hell,  if  we  calmly  and  de- 
liberately erased  from  our  English  Bibles  the  three 
words,  'damnation,'  'hell,'  and  'everlasting.'  I  say 
— unhesitatingly  I  say,  claiming  the  fullest  right  to 
speak  with  the  authority  of  knowledge — that  not 
one  of  those  words  ought  to  stand  any  longer  in  our 
English  Bible,  for  in  our  present  acceptation  of 
them,  they  are  simply  mistranslations."  This  cor- 
roborates the  metaphysical  interpretation  of  Scrip- 
ture, and  sustains  the  truth  that  hell  is  a  figure  of 
speech  which  represents  a  corrective  state  of  mind. 
When  error  has  reached  its  limit,  the  retroactive 
law  asserts  itself,  and  judgment,  being  part  of  that 
law,  brings  the  penalty  upon  the  transgressor.  This 
penalty  is  not  punishment,  but  discipline,  and  if  the 
transgressor  is  repentant  and  obedient,  he  is  forgiven. 
Under  our  civil  law,  criminals  are  confined  in 
penitentiaries  where  order,  regular  habits,  and  indus- 
try are  inculcated,  and  that  which  seems  punishment, 
proves  to  be  educational.  Men  are  everywhere  call- 
ing for  broader  educational  methods  in  our  prisons, 
and  this  demand  is  an  acknowledgment  of  the  neces- 
sity of  purification  through  discipline  and  training  in 
morals.  This  purifying  process  is  the  penalty  taught 
by  Jesus — the  judgment  passed  upon  sinners — the 
fire  of  hell.  When  it  is  received  in  the  right  spirit, 


Judgment  and  Justice  1 1 5 

this  fire  burns  up  the  dross  in  character  and  purifies 
mind  and  body. 

Metaphysicians  have  discovered  that  there  is  a 
certain  relation  between  the  functions  and  organs  of 
the  body  and  the  ideas  in  the  mind.  The  liver  seems 
to  be  connected  with  mental  discrimination,  and 
whenever  man  gets  very  active  along  the  line  of 
judgment,  especially  where  condemnation  enters  in, 
there  is  disturbance  of  some  kind  in  that  part  of  the 
organism.  A  habit  of  judging  others  with  severity 
and  fixing  in  one's  mind  what  the  punishment  should 
be,  causes  the  liver  to  become  torpid  and  to  cease  its 
natural  action;  the  complexion  becomes  muddy  as  a 
result.  "There  is  therefore  now  no  condemnation 
to  them  that  are  in  Christ  Jesus,  .  .  .  who  walk  not 
after  the  flesh,  but  after  the  Spirit."  This  statement 
held  in  mind,  and  carried  out  in  thought  and  act, 
will  heal  that  kind  of  liver  complaint.  Another 
form  of  thought  related  to  judgment  is  the  vacillating 
mind  which  never  seems  to  know  definitely  what  is 
the  proper  thing  to  do.  "A  double-minded  man, 
unstable  in  all  his  ways."  There  must  be  singleness 
of  mind  and  loyalty  to  true  ideas.  Every  one 
should  have  definite  ideas  of  what  is  just  and  right, 
and  stand  by  them.  This  stimulates  the  action  of 
the  liver,  and  often  gives  so-called  bad  people  good 
health,  because  they  are  not  under  self-condemna- 
tion. Condemnation  in  any  of  its  forms  retards  free- 
dom of  action  in  the  discriminative  faculty.  When 
we  hold  ourselves  in  guilt  and  condemnation,  the 
natural  energies  of  the  mind  are  weakened  and  the 
whole  body  becomes  inert. 

The  remedy  for  all  that  appears  unjust  is  denial 


1  ]  6  Lesson  Eleven 

of  condemnation  of  others,  or  of  self,  and  affirmation 
of  the  great  universal  Spirit  of  justice,  through  which 
all  unequal  and  unrighteous  conditions  are  finally 
adjusted. 

Observing  the  conditions  that  exist  in  the  world, 
the  just  man  would  have  them  righted  according  to 
what  he  perceives  to  be  the  equitable  law.  Unless 
such  a  one  has  spiritual  understanding,  he  is  very  apt 
to  bring  upon  himself  physical  disabilities  in  his 
efforts  to  reform  men.  If  his  feelings  come  to  a 
point  of  "righteous  indignation,"  and  he  "boils"  with 
anger  over  the  evils  of  the  world,  he  will  cook  the 
corpuscles  of  his  blood.  Jesus  gave  this  treatment 
for  such  a  mental  condition:  "For  neither  doth  the 
Father  judge  any  man,  but  he  hath  given  all  judg- 
ment unto  the  Son."  This  Son  is  the  Christ,  uni- 
versal Cosmos;  to  its  equity,  man  should  commit 
the  justice  which  he  wishes  to  see  brought  into  hu- 
man affairs.  Put  all  the  burdens  of  the  world  upon 
the  one  supreme  Judge  and  hold  every  man,  and  all 
the  conditions  in  which  men  are  involved,  amenable 
to  the  law  of  God.  By  so  doing,  you  will  set  into 
action  mind  forces  powerful  and  far-reaching. 

If  you  think  that  you  are  unjustly  treated  by 
your  friends,  your  employers,  your  government,  or 
those  with  whom  you  do  business,  simply  declare  the 
activity  of  the  almighty  Mind,  and  you  will  set 
into  action  mental  forces  that  will  find  expression  in 
the  executors  of  the  law.  This  is  the  most  lasting 
reform  to  which  man  can  apply  himself.  It  is  much 
more  effective  than  legislation  or  any  attempt  to 
control  unjust  men  by  mortal  ways. 

Jealousy  is  a  form  of  mental  bias  that  blinds  the 


Judgment  and  Justice  \  1  7 

judgment  and  causes  one  to  act  without  weighing 
the  consequences.  The  effect  of  this  state  of  mind 
upon  the  liver  is  violent  action  one  day  and  torpidity 
the  next,  finally  resulting  in  a  "jaundiced  eye"  and 
yellow  skin.  We  speak  of  one  "blinded  by  jeal- 
ousy," or  "blinded  by  prejudice."  We  do  not 
mean  by  this  that  the  physical  eyes  have  been  put 
out,  but  that  the  understanding  has  been  darkened. 
Whatever  darkens  the  understanding  interferes  in 
some  way  with  the  action  of  the  purifying  functions 
of  the  organism,  and  the  fluids  and  pigments  are 
congested  and  the  skin  becomes  darkened  in  con- 
sequence. 

The  remedy  for  all  this  is  a  dismissal  of  that 
poor  judgment  which  causes  one  to  be  jealous,  and 
a  fuller  trust  in  the  great  all-adjusting  Justice.  In 
this  there  should  be  active  trust,  which  is  a  form  of 
prayer.  The  disturbing  elements  that  come  into  life 
should  be  definitely  placed  in  the  hands  of  God. 
This  is  much  more  than  mere  doubtful  trust,  or  neg- 
ative expectancy  that  things  will  be  made  right. 
The  Spirit  of  justice  should  be  appealed  to  and 
prayed  to  with  the  persistency  of  an  Elijah,  or  of  the 
Gentile  woman  whose  importunity  was  rewarded. 
When  the  metaphysician  sits  by  his  patient  with 
closed  eyes  he  is  not  asleep,  but  very  much  awake  to 
the  reality  and  mental  visibility  of  forces  that  enter 
into  and  make  the  conditions  of  the  body.  This 
spiritual  activity  is  necessary  to  the  demonstration  of 
the  law. 

Success  in  the  world  is  largely  dependent  upon 
good  judgment.  A  prominent  business  man  was 
once  asked  what  he  considered  the  most  valuable 


1 1 8  Lesson  Eleven 

trait  of  mind  in  an  employee,  and  he  replied,  "Good 
judgment."  Everywhere  business  men  are  looking 
for  people  who  have  judgment  equal  to  the  making 
of  quick  decisions  on  the  spur  of  the  moment. 
Many  years  ago  a  station  agent  at  a  little  town  in 
Texas,  where  the  wreck  of  a  passenger  train  took 
place,  showed  his  good  judgment  by  settling,  right 
on  the  spot,  with  the  injured.  He  did  this  without 
authority  from  headquarters,  but  he  showed  such 
excellent  judgment  that  his  ability  was  recognized 
and  he  was  rapidly  advanced  until  he  became  presi- 
dent of  one  of  the  largest  railroad  systems  in  the 
United  States. 

The  ability  of  the  mind  to  arrive  at  quick  and 
right  conclusions  can  be  cultivated  by  clearing  up  the 
understanding,  and  acknowledging  the  one  supreme 
Mind  in  which  is  all  discrimination.  Take  the  stand 
that  it  is  your  inheritance  from  God  to  judge  wisely 
and  quickly,  and  do  not  depart  therefrom  by  state- 
ments of  inefficiency  in  matters  of  judgment.  When 
you  are  in  doubt  as  to  the  right  thing  to  do  in  at- 
taining justice  in  worldly  affairs,  ask  that  this  eternal 
Spirit  of  justice  shall  go  forth  in  your  behalf  and 
bring  about  and  restore  to  you  that  which  is  your 
very  own.  Do  not  ask  for  anything  but  your  very 
own  under  the  righteous  law.  Some  people  uncon- 
sciously overreach  in  their  desire  for  possessions. 
When  they  put  the  matter  into  the  hands  of  the 
Spirit,  and  things  do  not  turn  out  just  as  they  had 
fixed  them  in  their  mortal  way,  they  are  disappointed 
and  rebellious.  This  will  not  do  under  the  spiritual 
law  which  requires  that  man  shall  be  satisfied  with 
justice  and  accept  the  results,  whatever  they  may  be. 


Judgment  and  Justice  1 1 9 

"There  is  a  divinity  that  shapes  our  ends,"  and  it  can 
be  cooperated  with  by  one  who  believes  in  things 
spiritual,  and  all  the  voyage  of  life  will  thereby  be 
made  prosperous  and  happy. 


JUDGMENT  AND  JUSTICE  STATEMENTS 

(To  be  used  in  connection  with  Lesson  Eleven.) 

Teach  me  thy  way,  O  Jehovah;  And  lead  me 
in  a  plain  path. — Psalm  27: 11. 

The  righteousness  of  the  Divine  Law  is  active 
in  all  my  affairs  and  I  am  protected. 

Stand  therefore,  having  girded  your  loins  with 
truth,  and  having  put  on  the  breastplate  of  right- 
eousness.— Eph.  6:14. 

The  meek  will  he  guide  in  justice. — Psalm  25 :9. 

I  will  sing  of  lovingkindness  and  justice. — Psalm 
101:1. 

My  judgment  is  just;  because  I  seek  not  mine 
own  will,  but  the  will  of  the  Father. 

Judge  not,  lest  ye  be  judged. 

Behold  now,  I  have  set  my  cause  in  order;  I 
know  that  I  am  righteous. — Job  13:18. 

I  believe  in  the  Divine  Law  of  justice,  and  I 
trust  it  to  set  right  every  transaction  that  comes  into 
my  life. 

There  is  now  no  condemnation  to  them  that  are 
in  Christ  Jesus. 

I  no  longer  condemn,  criticize,  censure,  or  find 
fault  with  my  associates.  Neither  do  I  belittle  nor 
condemn  myself. 


LOVE 

LESSON  TWELVE 

Behold  what  manner  of  love  the  Father  hath  bestowed 
upon  us.  that  we  should  be  called  children  of  God:  and 
tuch  we  are. — I  John  3:1. 

He  that  abideth  in  love  abideth  in  God,  and  God  abid- 
eth  in  him. — I  John  4:16. 

He  that  hath  my  commandments,  and  keepeth  them,  he 
k  is  that  loveth  me:  and  he  that  loveth  me  shall  be  loved  of 
my  Father,  and  I  will  love  him,  and  will  manifest  myself 
unto  him. — John  14:21. 

Love,  in  Divine  Mind,  is  the  idea  of  universal 
unity.  In  expression,  love  is  the  power  that  joins 
and  binds  in  Divine  Harmony  the  universe  and 
everything  in  it. 

Among  the  faculties  of  the  mind,  love  is  pivotal. 
Its  center  of  mentation  in  the  body  is  the  solar  plexus. 
The  physical  representative  of  love  is  the  heart,  the 
office  of  which  is  to  equalize  the  circulation  of  the 
blood  in  the  body.  As  the  heart  equalizes  the  life- 
flow  in  the  body,  so  love  harmonizes  the  thought  of 
the  mind. 

We  have  found  that  the  twelve  sons  of  Jacob 
represent  the  twelve  faculties  of  mind.  When  Levi 
(love)  was  brought  forth  by  the  human  soul 
(Leah),  his  mother  said,  "Now  this  time  will  my 
husband  be  joined  unto  me.*'  We  connect  our  soul 
forces  with  whatever  we  center  our  love  upon.  If 
we  love  the  things  of  sense  or  materiality,  we  are 
joined  or  attached  to  them  through  a  fixed  law  of 

120 


Love  121 

Being.  In  the  Divine  Order  of  being,  the  soul,  or 
thinking  part  of  man  is  joined  to  its  spiritual  ego.  If 
it  allows  itself  to  become  joined  to  the  outer,  or 
sense  consciousness,  it  makes  personal  images  which 
are  limitations.  The  Lord  commanded  Moses  to 
make  all  things  after  the  pattern  shown  in  the  mount. 
This  "mount"  is  the  place  of  high  understanding,  or 
spiritual  consciousness,  whose  center  of  action  is  in 
the  very  apex  of  the  brain. 

In  the  regeneration,  our  love  goes  through  a 
transformation  which  broadens,  strengthens,  and 
deepens  it.  We  no  longer  confine  love  to  family, 
friends,  and  personal  relations,  but  expand  it  to  in- 
clude all  things.  The  denial  of  human  relationships 
seems  at  first  glance  to  be  a  repudiation  of  the  family 
group,  but  it  is  merely  a  cleansing  of  the  mind  from 
limited  ideas  of  love  when  this  faculty  would  satisfy 
itself  solely  by  means  of  human  kinship.  If  God  is 
the  Father  of  all,  then  men  and  women  are  brothers 
and  sisters  in  a  universal  family,  and  one  who  sees 
spiritually  should  open  his  heart  and  cultivate  that 
inclusive  love  which  God  has  given  as  the  unifying 
element  in  the  human  family.  Just  to  the  extent  that 
we  separate  ourselves  into  families,  cliques,  and  re- 
ligious factions,  do  we  put  away  God's  love.  Unless 
there  is  a  specific  denial  along  every  line  of  human 
thought  bondage,  one  will  still  be  under  the  law  of 
sense.  A  direct  affirmation  of  spiritual  unity  based 
upon  obedience,  should  be  made  by  every  one  who 
desires  to  realize  this  true  relation.  Jesus  said, 
"Who  is  my  mother?  and  who  are  my  brethren? 
And  he  stretched  forth  his  hand  towards  his  dis- 
ciples, and  said,  Behold,  my  mother  and  my  breth- 


122  Le«on   Tvebc 

ren!  For  whosoever  shall  do  the  will  of  my  Father 
who  is  in  heaven,  he  is  my  brother,  and  sister,  and 
mother." 

Among  the  disciples  of  Jesus  Christ,  John  rep- 
resents love — he  laid  his  head  on  the  Master's 
bosom.  When  this  disciple  is  called,  love  is  quick- 
ened in  consciousness.  The  calling  of  this  disciple 
consists  in  bringing  to  consciousness  a  right  under- 
standing of  the  true  character  of  love,  also  its  exer- 
cise in  all  the  relations  of  life.  One  should  make  it 
a  practice  to  meditate  regularly  upon  the  love  idea 
in  universal  Mind,  with  the  prayer,  "Divine  Love, 
manifest  thyself  in  me."  Then  there  should  be 
periods  of  mental  concentration  upon  the  love  center 
in  the  solar  plexus,  near  the  heart.  It  is  not  neces- 
sary to  know  the  exact  location  of  this  aggregation 
of  love  cells.  Think  about  love  with  the  attention 
drawn  within  the  breast,  and  a  quickening  will  fol- 
low ;  all  the  ideas  that  go  to  make  up  love,  will  be  set 
into  rapid  motion.  This  produces  a  positive  love 
current,  which,  when  sent  forth  with  power,  will 
break  up  opposing  thoughts  of  hate,  and  render  them 
null  and  void.  These  thoughts  of  hate  will  be  dis- 
solved, not  only  in  the  mind  of  the  thinker,  but  in  the 
minds  of  those  with  whom  he  comes  in  contact  in 
mind  or  body.  The  love  current  is  not  a  projection 
of  the  will ;  it  is  a  setting  free  of  a  natural,  equaliz- 
ing, harmonizing  force  which  in  most  people  has  been 
dammed  up  by  human  limitations.  The  ordinary 
man  is  not  aware  that  he  possesses  this  mighty  power 
which  will  turn  away  every  shaft  of  hate  that  is 
aimed  at  him.  We  know  that  "a  soft  answer  turaeth 
away  wrath,"  but  here  is  a  faculty  native  to  man. 


Love  123 

existent  in  every  soul,  which  may  be  used  at  all  times 
to  bring  about  harmony  and  unity  among  those  who 
have  been  disunited  through  misunderstandings,  con- 
tentions, and  selfishness. 

Henry  Drummond  says  that  Paul's  13th  chap- 
ter of  I  Corinthians  is  the  greatest  love  poem  ever 
written.  In  his  book  based  upon  this  chapter,  "Love, 
the  Supreme  Gift,"  Professor  Drummond  analyzes 
love  and  portrays  its  various  activities.  We  quote  as 
follows : 

THE  SPECTRUM  OF  LOVE.  "Love  is  a  compound 
thing,"  Paul  tells  us.  It  is  like  light.  As  you  have  seen  a 
man  of  science  take  a  beam  of  light  and  pass  it  through  a 
crystal  prism,  as  you  have  seen  it  come  out  on  the  other  side 
of  the  prism  broken  up  into  its  component  colors — red  and 
blue  and  yellow  and  orange,  and  all  the  colors  of  the  rain- 
bow— so  Paul  passes  this  thing,  love,  through  the  magnifi- 
cent prism  of  his  inspired  intellect,  and  it  comes  out  on  the 
other  side  broken  up  into  its  elements.  And  in  these  few 
words  we  have  what  one  might  call  the  Spectrum  of  Love, 
the  analysis  of  love.  Will  you  observe  what  its  elements 
are?  Will  you  notice  that  they  have  common  names;  that 
they  are  virtues  which  we  hear  about  every  day;  that  they 
are  things  that  can  be  practiced  by  every  man  in  every 
place  in  life;  and  how,  by  a  multitude  of  small  things  and 
ordinary  virtues,  the  supreme  thing,  the  summum  bonum,  is 
made  up?  The  Spectrum  of  Love  has  nine  ingredients,  viz.: 

Patience — "Love  suffereth  long."  Kindness — "and  is 
kind."  Generosity — "Love  envieth  not."  Humility — 
"Love  vaunteth  not  itself,  is  not  puffed  up."  Courtesy — 
"Doth  not  behave  itself  unseemly."  Unselfishness — "Seek- 
eth  not  her  own."  Good  Temper — "Is  not  easily  pro- 
voked." Guile lessness — "Thinketh  no  evil."  Sincerity — 
"Rejoiceth  not  in  iniquity,  but  rejoiceth  in  the  truth." 

Professor  Drummond,  in  his  address  upon  this 
chapter  to  Mr.  Moody  *s  students  gathered  at  North- 


124  Lesson  Tnckc 

field,  Mass.,  said:  "How  many  of  you  will  join 
me  in  reading  this  chapter  once  a  week  for  the  next 
three  months?  A  man  did  that  once  and  it  changed 
his  whole  life.  Will  you  do  it?  Will  you?" 

Love  is  more  than  mere  affection,  and  all  our 
words  protesting  our  love  are  not  of  value  unless 
we  have  this  inner  current,  which  is  real  substance. 
Though  we  have  the  eloquence  of  men  and  of 
angels,  and  have  not  this  deeper  feeling,  it  profits  us 
nothing.  We  should  deny  the  mere  conventional, 
surface  affection,  and  set  our  minds  on  the  very  sub- 
stance of  love. 

Charity  is  not  love.  You  may  be  kind-hearted, 
and  give  to  the  poor  and  needy  until  you  are  im- 
poverished, yet  not  acquire  love.  You  may  be  a 
martyr  to  the  cause  of  Truth  and  consume  your 
vitality  in  good  works,  yet  be  far  from  love.  Love 
is  a  force  that  runs  in  the  mind  and  body  like  molten 
gold  in  a  furnace.  It  does  not  mix  with  the  baser 
metals — it  has  no  affinity  for  anything  less  than  it- 
self. Love  is  patient;  it  never  gets  weary  nor  dis- 
couraged. Love  is  always  kind  and  gentle.  It  does 
not  envy ;  jealousy  has  no  place  in  its  world.  Love 
never  becomes  puffed  up  with  human  pride,  and 
does  not  brag  about  itself.  It  is  love  that  makes  the 
refinement  of  the  natural  gentleman  or  lady,  although 
he  or  she  may  be  ignorant  of  the  world's  standards 
of  culture.  ^  Love  does  not  seek  its  own — its  own 
comes  to  it  without  seeking.] 

Jesus  Christ  came  proclaiming  the  spiritual  re- 
lationship of  the  human  family.  His  teaching  was 
always  of  gentleness,  nonresistance,  love.  "I  say 
unto  you,  Love  your  enemies,  and  pray  for  them  that 


Love  125 

persecute  you."  To  do  this,  one  must  be  established 
in  the  consciousness  of  Divine  Love,  and  it  requires 
discipline  of  the  mental  nature  to  preserve  such  a 
high  standard.  The  Divine  Law  is  founded  in  the 
eternal  unity  of  all  things,  and  "love  therefore  is 
the  fulfilment  of  the  law."  Physical  science  has 
discovered  that  everything  can  be  reduced  to  a  few 
primal  elements,  and  that  if  the  universe  were  de- 
stroyed it  could  be  built  up  again  from  a  single  cell. 
So  this  law  of  harmony,  which  has  its  origin  in  love, 
is  established  in  the  midst  of  every  individual.  "I 
will  put  my  law  in  their  inward  parts,  and  in  their 
heart  will  I  write  it."  But  before  this  fixed  inward 
principle  can  be  brought  to  the  surface,  man  must 
open  the  way  by  having  faith  in  the  power  of  love 
to  accomplish  all  that  Jesus  claimed  for  it. 

"The  love  of  money  is  a  root  of  all  kinds  of 
evil."  This  says  that  the  love  of  money,  not  money 
itself,  is  the  root  of  all  kinds  of  evil.  Money  is  a 
convenience  that  saves  men  many  burdens  in  the  ex- 
change of  values.  Primitive  civilization  used  the 
cumbersome  custom  of  trading  products  without  a 
money  representative,  while  modem  progress  uses 
money  more  and  more  as  a  medium  of  exchange. 
Money  is  therefore  good  to  the  man  of  sense;  but 
when  he  allows  himself  to  become  enamored  of  it 
and  hoards  it,  he  makes  it  his  god.  The  erasure 
of  this  idea  from  human  consciousness  is  part  of  the 
metaphysician's  work.  Trusting  in  God,  we  have 
faith  in  him  as  our  Resource  and  he  becomes  a  per- 
petual spiritual  supply  and  support ;  but  having  faith 
in  the  power  of  material  riches,  our  trust  is  weaned 
from  God  and  established  in  this  transitory  substance 


126  Lesson  Twelve 

of  rust  and  corruption.  This  point  is  not  clearly 
understood  by  those  who  are  hypnotized  by  the 
money  idea.  When  the  metaphysician  affirms  God 
to  be  his  opulent  supply  and  support,  and  declares 
that  he  has  money  in  abundance,  the  assumption  is 
that  he  loves  money  and  depends  upon  it  in  the  same 
way  that  the  devotees  of  mammon  do.  The  differ- 
ence is  that  one  trusts  in  the  law  of  God  while  the 
other  trusts  in  the  ways  of  mammon.  The  man  who 
blindly  gives  himself  up  to  money  getting  acquires  a 
love  for  it,  and  finally  becomes  its  slave.  The  wise 
metaphysician  deals  with  the  money  idea,  and  mas- 
ters it. 

When  Jesus  said,  "I  have  overcome  the  world," 
he  meant  that  by  the  use  of  certain  words  he 
had  dissolved  all  adverse  states  of  consciousness  in 
materiality,  appetite,  and  selfishness.  Christ  is  the 
Word,  the  Logos.  Because  the  word  is  the  mind 
seed  from  which  springs  every  condition,  great  stress 
is  laid  upon  the  power  of  the  word,  both  in  the 
Scriptures  and  in  the  metaphysical  interpretations  of 
the  Scriptures.  The  word  is  the  most  enduring 
thing  in  existence.  "Heaven  and  earth  shall  pass 
away,  but  my  words  shall  not  pass  away."  All 
metaphysicians  recognize  that  certain  words,  used 
persistently,  mold  and  transform  conditions  in  mind, 
body,  and  affairs.  The  word  love  overcomes  hate, 
resistance,  opposition,  obstinacy,  anger,  jealousy, 
and  all  states  of  consciousness  where  there  is  mental 
or  physical  friction.  Words  make  cells,  and  these 
cells  are  adjusted  one  tolhe  other  through  associated 
ideas.  When  Divine  Love  enters  into  the  thought 
process,  every  cell  is  poised  and  balanced  in  space, 


Love  127 

in  mathematical  order  as  to  weight  and  relative 
distance.  Law  and  order  rule  in  the  molecules  of 
the  body  with  the  exactness  which  characterizes 
their  action  in  the  worlds  of  a  planetary  system. 

Divine  Love  and  human  love  should  not  be  con- 
founded, because  one  is  as  broad  as  the  universe  and 
is  always  governed  by  undeviating  laws,  while  the 
other  is  fickle,  selfish,  and  lawless.  It  was  to  this 
personal  aspect  of  the  love  center  in  man  that  Jesus 
referred  when  he  said,  "Out  of  the  heart  of  men, 
evil  thoughts  proceed."  But  in  the  regeneration  all 
this  is  changed;  the  heart  is  cleansed  and  becomes 
the  standard  of  right  relation  between  all  men.  "By 
this  shall  men  know  that  ye  are  my  disciples,  if  ye 
have  love  one  to  another."  We  cannot  enter  fully 
into  the  Jesus  Christ  consciousness  so  long  as  we  have 
a  grudge  against  any  one.  The  mind  is  so  consti- 
tuted that  a  single  thought  of  a  discordant  character 
tinges  the  whole  consciousness;  so  we  must  cast  out 
all  evil  and  resisting  thoughts,  before  we  can  know 
the  love  of  God  in  its  fullness.  "If  therefore  thou 
art  offering  thy  gift  at  the  altar,  and  there  remember- 
est  that  thy  brother  hath  aught  against  thee,  leave 
there  thy  gift  before  the  altar,  and  go  thy  way,  first 
be  reconciled  to  thy  brother,  and  then  come  and  offer 
thy  gift." 

Divine  Love  in  the  heart  establishes  one  in  fear- 
lessness and  indomitable  courage.  "God  gave  us 
not  a  spirit  of  fearfulness;  but  of  power  and  love 
and  discipline."  A  woman  who  understands  this 
law  was  attacked  by  a  tramp.  She  looked  him 
steadily  in  the  eye  and  said,  "God  loves  you."  He 
released  his  hold  upon  her,  and  slunk  away.  An- 


128  Lesson  Tvehe 

other  woman  saw  a  man  beating  a  horse  that  could 
not  pull  a  load  up  a  hill.  She  silently  said  to  the 
man,  "The  love  of  God  fills  your  heart,  and  you  are 
tender  and  kind.'*  He  unhitched  the  horse;  the 
grateful  animal  walked  directly  over  to  the  house 
where  the  woman  was,  and  put  his  nose  against  the 
window  behind  which  she  stood.  A  young  girl  sang 
"Jesus  Lover  of  My  Soul,"  to  a  calloused  criminal ; 
the  man's  heart  was  softened,  and  he  was  reformed. 
The  new  heaven  and  the  new  earth  which  are 
now  being  established  between  men  and  nations  the 
world  over,  are  based  upon  love.  When  men  under- 
stand each  other,  love  increases.  This  is  true,  not 
only  among  men,  but  among  men  and  the  animal 
world,  and  even  the  vegetable  world.  In  Yellow- 
stone Park,  where  protection  of  animals  has  been 
commanded  by  our  government,  grizzly  bears  come 
to  the  house  doors  and  eat  scraps  from  the  table,  and 
wild  animals  of  all  kinds  are  tame  and  friendly. 
"The  wolf  shall  dwell  with  the  lamb,  and  the 
leopard  shall  lie  down  with  the  kid;  and  the  calf 
and  the  young  lion  and  the  falling  together;  and  a 
little  child  shall  lead  them.  .  .  .  They  shall  not 
hurt  nor  destroy  in  all  my  holy  mountain;  for  the 
earth  shall  be  full  of  the  knowledge  of  Jehovah,  as 
the  waters  cover  the  sea." 

Beloved,  let  us  love  one  another:  for  love  is  of  God; 
and  every  one  that  loveth  is  begotten  of  God,  and  knoweth 
God.  He  that  loveth  not  knoweth  not  God;  for  God  is 
love.  Herein  was  the  love  of  God  manifested  in  us,  that 
God  hath  sent  his  only  begotten  Son  into  the  world  that  we 
might  live  through  him.  Herein  is  love,  not  that  we  loved 
God,  but  that  he  loved  us,  and  sent  his  Son  to  be  the  pro- 
pitiation for  our  sins.  Beloved,  if  God  so  loved  us,  we  also 


Love  129 

ought  to  love  one  another.  No  man  hath  beheld  God  at 
any  time:  if  we  love  one  another,  God  abideth  in  us,  and  his 
love  is  perfected  in  us:  hereby  we  know  that  we  abide  in 
him  and  he  in  us,  because  he  hath  given  us  of  his  Spirit. 
And  we  have  beheld  and  bear  witness  that  the  Father  hath 
sent  the  Son  to  be  the  Saviour  of  the  world.  Whosoever 
shall  confess  that  Jesus  is  the  Son  of  God,  God  abideth  in 
him,  and  he  in  God.  And  we  know  and  have  believed  the 
love  which  God  hath  in  us.  God  is  love;  and  he  that  abid- 
eth in  love  abideth  in  God,  and  God  abideth  in  him.  Herein 
is  love  made  perfect  with  us,  that  we  may  have  boldness  in 
the  day  of  judgment;  because  as  he  is,  even  so  are  we  in  this 
world.  There  is  no  fear  in  love :  but  perfect  love  casteth  out 
fear,  because  fear  hath  punishment;  and  he  that  feareth  is 
not  made  perfect  in  love.  We  love,  because  he  first  loved 
us.  If  a  man  say,  I  love  God,  and  hateth  his  brother,  he 
is  a  liar:  for  he  that  loveth  not  his  brother  whom  he  hath 
seen,  cannot  love  God  whom  he  hath  not  seen.  And  this 
commandment  have  we  from  him,  that  he  who  loveth  God 
love  his  brother  also. — I  John  4:7-21. 


LOVE  DEMONSTRATED 

(To  be  used  in  connection  with  Lesson  Twelve.) 

God  is  Love,  and  he  that  dwelleth  in  love, 
dwelleth  in  God. 

I  dwell  consciously  in  the  very  presence  of  In- 
finite Love. 

God  is  Love,  and  every  one  that  loveth  is  born  of 
God. 

I  am  bora  of  love. 

Love  is  the  fulfilling  of  the  law. 

I  love  everybody  and  everything. 

Faith  worketh  by  love. 

I  have  faith  in  the  supreme  power  of  love. 


130  Lcuon  Twelve 


God  hath  not  given  us  the  spirit  of  fear,  but  of 
power  and  of  love,  and  of  a  sound  mind. 

I  am  fearless,  powerful,  and  wise  in  God's  love. 

Behold,  what  manner  of  love  the  Father  hath 
bestowed  upon  us,  that  we  should  be  called  the  sons 
of  God. 

I  love  the  Lord  my  God  with  all  my  heart,  and 
with  all  my  mind,  and  with  all  my  soul,  and  with 
all  my  strength. 

But  now  abideth  faith,  hope,  love,  these  three; 
and  the  greatest  of  these  is  love.  —  I  Cor.  13:13. 


TALKS 

ON 

TRUTH 


HOW    MICROBES   ARE   MADE 

And  out  of  the  ground  Jehovah  God  formed  every 
beast  of  the  field,  and  every  bird  of  the  heavens;  and 
brought  them  unto  the  man  to  see  what  he  would  call  them : 
and  whatsoever  the  man  called  every  living  creature,  that 
was  the  name  thereof. — Gen.  2:19. 

He  that  overcometh,  I  will  give  to  him  to  sit  down  with 
me  in  my  throne. — Rev.  3 :2 1 . 

The  author  of  Genesis  was  evidently  a  great 
metaphysician.  He  described  Being  as  God,  Je- 
hovah God,  and  Adam.  We  would  express  the 
same  truth  in  the  terms,  Mind,  Idea,  and  Manifesta- 
tion. The  manifestation  is  always  the  self-conscious, 
hence  the  limited.  This  is  Adam.  But  Mind,  Idea, 
and  Manifestation  are  one.  Manifestation  rests 
upon  and  is  sustained  by  the  Idea,  and  the  Idea  is 
encompassed  by  the  Mind  that  conceives  it ;  therefore 
the  real  of  Adam  is  Jehovah  God,  and  the  omni- 
present Fount  of  Jehovah  God  is  the  one  God.  This 
being  true,  man  has  no  permanent  existence  while  he 
is  wholly  in  the  consciousness  of  the  personal  estate. 
The  Adam  condition  is  not  all  of  his  being;  it  is 
merely  a  part.  His  being  is  summed  up  in  a  con- 
sciousness of  God,  Jehovah  God,  and  Adam.  These 
three  are  not  separated,  but  are  omnipresent  in  every 
one.  The  only  walls  of  separation  are  those  built  by 
consciousness  of  separation.  When  wisdom  is  found 
and  its  conditions  complied  with,  the  consciousness 
of  the  omnipresence  of  the  Three  in  One  is  pro- 
claimed: "Believest  thou  not  that  I  am  in  the  Father, 

135 


136  Talk*  on  Truth 

and  the  Father  in  me?  the  words  that  I  say  unto  you 
I  speak  not  from  myself:  but  the  Father  abiding  in 
me  doeth  his  works"  (John  14:10). 

Adam  is  perfectly  legitimate  in  his  right  place, 
and  that  place  is  the  consciousness  of  the  omnipres- 
ence of  the  Father;  here  he  is  back  again  in  the 
Garden  of  Eden.  Adam  has  a  very  important  place 
in  creation  in  that  he  is  the  factor  in  the  manifesta- 
tion of  Being  that  "names"  or  gives  character  to 
its  potentialities. 

Man  is  not  Adam;  Adam  is  a  part  of  man's 
consciousness.  Adam  is  your  intellect,  but  you 
transcend  the  intellect.  You  form  your  intellect 
from  the  "dust  of  the  ground;"  that  is,  from  the 
omnipresent  substance,  and  through  it  as  a  kind  of 
reflecting  lens,  you  give  character  to  your  surround- 
ings. 

Those  familiar  with  the  study  of  the  operations 
of  the  intellect,  tell  us  that  it  is  constantly  making 
images  of  the  ideas  that  float  into  its  surroundings. 
It  is  when  we  know  this,  that  we  are  astonished  at 
the  metaphysical  depth  of  Genesis.  Jehovah  God 
is  described  as  bringing  "every  beast  of  the  field,  and 
every  bird  of  the  heavens"  to  Adam  "to  see  what  he 
would  call  them." 

The  beasts  of  the  field  are  the  ideas  in  Being 
pertaining  to  organized  life,  and  the  "birds  of  the 
heavens"  are  ideas  of  spiritual  life.  It  is  the  Adam, 
or  intellect,  that  gives  character  to  both  ideal  con- 
ditions; it  is  through  him  that  man  makes  his  heaven 
or  his  hell.  Among  the  disciples  of  Jesus,  Peter 
represented  one  aspect  of  the  I  AM.  He  had  been 
in  a  measure  opened  to  the  light  of  Spirit,  and  his 


How  Microbes  A  re  A/a  de  1 3  7 

power  over  ideas  recognized.  "I  will  give  unto  thee 
the  keys  of  the  kingdom  of  heaven :  and  whatsoever 
thou  shall  bind  on  earth  shall  be  bound  in  heaven; 
and  whatsoever  thou  shalt  loose  on  earth  shall  be 
loosed  in  heaven"  (Matt.  16:19).  This  is  a  repe- 
tition on  a  higher  plane  of  the  allegory  of  Jehovah 
God  bringing  to  Adam  the  beasts  of  the  field  and 
fowls  of  the  heavens  to  see  what  he  would  call  them. 

He  who  studies  Mind  may  know  how  to  "dis- 
cern the  signs  of  the  times."  He  becomes  familiar 
with  certain  underlying  principles  and  he  recognizes 
them  in  their  different  masks  in  the  whirligig  of  time. 
Under  the  veil  of  historical  symbology  the  Scrip- 
tures portray  the  movements  of  Mind  in  its  different 
cycles  of  progress.  These  cycles  repeat  themselves 
over  and  over  again,  but  each  time  on  a  little  higher 
plane.  Thus  the  sphere  or  circle  is  a  type  of  the 
complete  Mind,  but  in  manifestation  the  circles  are 
piled  one  on  top  of  another  in  an  infinite  spiral. 

We,  today,  are  repeating  the  mental  circle  of 
two  thousand  years  ago.  The  descent  of  the  Spirit 
into  the  earth  consciousness,  as  symbolized  by  the 
life  and  death  of  Jesus  Christ,  is  being  again  enacted 
in  our  age.  The  idea  of  a  personal  Messiah  has 
been  raised  to  include  Messiahship  for  all  who  will 
drink  of  the  waters  of  life  now  being  poured  out 
upon  mankind ;  it  includes  all  who  will  dwell  in  the 
fadeless,  immanent  Light,  the  Christ  of  God. 

But  principles  do  not  change — man  makes  his 
heaven  or  his  hell  just  as  he  did  two  thousand  or  two 
million  years  ago.  In  the  days  of  Moses,  the  Egyp- 
tians refused  to  give  freedom  to  the  Israelites  (their 
spiritual  ideas),  and  they  saw  frogs,  lice,  locusts,  and 


1 38  Talk*  on  Truth 

blood  in  earth,  air,  and  water.  Today  those  who 
contend  for  the  Egyptian  darkness  of  the  intellect, 
see  in  the  same  earth,  air,  and  water,  disease  germs, 
death  microbes,  and  destructive  animalcules. 

It  is  now  almost  universally  accepted  by  phy- 
sicians that  the  majority  of  diseases  are  caused  by 
minute  forms  of  life,  commonly  called  "microbes"  or 
disease  germs.  Cancer,  consumption,  diphtheria, 
croup,  etc.,  each  has  its  specific  microbe,  which  is  the 
invisible  yet  active  agent.  These  microbes  may  be 
seen  with  very  strong  microscopes,  and  the  form  and 
character  of  the  different  varieties  are  fully  de- 
scribed by  experts  like  Pasteur  and  Koch,  whose 
antidotes  for  these  destructive  little  animals  have 
been  widely  advertised.  Their  remedy  consists  in 
destroying  the  microbe — they  do  not  attempt  to  ex- 
plain his  origin.  They  find  the  little  worker  busy  in 
the  bodies  of  mankind,  and  they  seek  to  put  him 
out  of  action,  not  asking  where  he  came  from  nor 
whither  he  may  go. 

The  reflective  mind  is  not  satisfied  with  this 
superficial  way  of  dealing  with  such  destructive 
agents.  It  asks  their  cause,  but  no  answer  is  vouch- 
safed on  the  part  of  those  who  study  microbes. 
Only  the  students  of  mind  can  answer  the  question 
of  the  origin  of  microbes  and  disease  germs,  and 
only  from  the  mental  point  of  observation  can  there 
come  a  rational  explanation  of  these  minute  life 
forms. 

The  Adam-man,  the  intellect,  is  responsible  for 
all  the  microbes.  He  gives  character  to  all  the 
ideas  that  exist — he  "names"  them.  This  process  is 
intricate,  and  it  may  be  explained  and  understood  in 


Microbes  Are  Made  1 39 

its  details  only  by  metaphysicians  of  the  deepest 
mental  insight,  but  it  is  summed  up  in  what  is  com- 
monly called  "thinking." 

Many  factors  enter  into  the  process  of  "think- 
ing." The  capacity  of  the  thinker  to  form  thoughts, 
to  give  them  substance  and  force  is  the  great  factor. 
The  understanding  of  right  and  wrong,  truth  and 
error,  substance  and  shadow,  is  also  important. 
Many  other  significant  conditions  enter  into  that 
mental  process  loosely  termed  "thinking." 

But  we  should  not  be  ignorant  of  the  fact  that 
every  mental  process  is  generative,  that  from  thinking 
is  evolved  what  is  called  living.  Thinking  is  forma- 
tive— every  thought  clothes  itself  in  a  life  form  ac- 
cording to  the  character  given  it  by  the  thinker.  This 
being  true,  it  must  follow  that  thoughts  of  health 
will  produce  microbes  whose  office  is  to  build  up 
healthy  organisms,  that  thoughts  of  disease  will  pro- 
duce microbes  of  disorder  and  destruction.  Here 
we  have  the  connecting  link  between  materia  medica 
and  metaphysics.  The  physician  observes  the  rav- 
ages of  the  disease  microbe,  but  is  at  a  loss  to  ac- 
count for  its  source ;  the  metaphysician  stands  in  the 
factory  of  Mind  and  sees  thoughts  poured  into  vis- 
ibility as  microbes.  This  opens  up  a  field  of  causes 
unlimited  in  extent.  Every  thought  that  flits  through 
the  mind  of  every  man,  woman,  and  child  in  the 
universe,  produces  a  living  organism,  a  microbe  of 
character  like  its  producing  thought.  There  is  no 
escape  from  this  conclusion,  no  escape  from  the 
mighty  possibilities  of  good  and  ill  that  rest  with 
the  thinker. 

Take  an  illustration  by  observing  the  various 


140  Talks  on  Truth 

stages  of  the  law  in  the  case  of  diphtheria.  A  child 
is  attacked ;  the  doctor  is  called,  and  from  symptoms, 
he  detects  the  disease.  He  communicates  his  fears 
to  the  family,  and  in  addition  to  the  diphtheria  mi- 
crobe, another  of  more  deadly  character  commences 
its  inroads  upon  the  nerve  centers  of  the  whole 
family,  including  the  weakened,  and  therefore 
doubly  susceptible  patient;  this  is  the  microbe  of 
/ear,  which  paralyzes  life  throughout  the  body. 
When  these  microbes  have  done  their  work  up  to  a 
certain  point,  still  another  is  created  to  complete  it 
— the  microbe  of  death. 

This  may  seem  an  exaggeration,  but  we  have  the 
authority  of  Dr.  Parker,  a  physician  of  New  York, 
who  states  that  he  has  discovered  the  microbe  of 
death  and  experimented  with  it.  A  newspaper  arti- 
cle, describing  his  discovery,  says : 

Death  is  caused  by  a  certain  specific  microbe,  that  can 
be  recognized  and  bred,  just  as  the  microbes  of  various  dis- 
eases have  been  discovered  and  propagated  by  Koch. 
Pasteur,  and  other  bacteriologists.  The  labors  of  these 
great  men  have  made  further  discovery  possible,  and  it  was 
through  the  study  of  their  achievements  that  Dr.  Parker 
conceived  the  idea  that,  inasmuch  as  disease  was  caused  by 
these  infinitesimal  derangers  of  the  human  system,  the  culmi- 
nation of  disease  must  have  its  own  specific  microbe  to  put 
the  finish  to  the  work  of  dissolution,  without  which  the  vari- 
ous organs  of  the  body,  distempered  and  degraded  from 
their  pristine  purity  and  vital  activity,  would  remain  a  puru- 
lent mass  of  living  corruption,  unable  to  resolve  itself  into  its 
primal  elements  and  to  form  other  combinations,  a  process 
which  we  see  taking  place  every  day  as  defunct  animal 
matter  sinks  into  the  earth,  or  vanishes  into  the  air  to  afford 
food  for  new  and  active  organisms. 

This  is  not  at  all  improbable,  but  the  discovery 


How  Microbes  Are  Made  \  4 1 

might  properly  have  been  anticipated  by  the  meta- 
physician. If  thought  is  creative,  it  must  cover  every 
phase  of  life;  every  thought  must  form  its  microbe; 
every  life  expression  must  have  originated  in  some 
thought.  These  propositions  are  axiomatic,  and 
when  one  familiar  with  mind,  discovers  a  microbe, 
he  should  know  just  what  idea  in  the  Adam  con- 
sciousness, or  intellect,  gave  it  form  and  name. 

Anger,  jealousy,  malice,  avarice,  lust,  ambition, 
selfishness,  and  in  fact  all  of  the  detestable  ideas 
that  mankind  harbors,  produce  living  organisms  after 
their  kind.  If  we  had  microscopes  strong  enough,  we 
would  find  our  bodies  to  be  composed  of  living  mi- 
crobes, doing  to  the  best  of  their  ability  the  tasks 
which  intellect  has  set  before  them. 

If  you  have  said,  "I  hate  you,"  there  have  been 
created  in  your  atmosphere  hate  germs  that  will  do 
the  work  for  which  you  created  them.  If  one's 
enemies  alone  were  attacked  by  these  microbes  of 
thought,  the  law  would  not  be  so  severe,  but  they 
have  no  respect  of  person,  and  are  apt  to  turn  upon 
the  body  of  their  creator  and  tear  it  down. 

Doctors  are  especially  industrious  in  creating  mi- 
crobes in  their  particular  line.  They  make  a  new 
disease  every  day,  or  rename  an  old  one,  and  each 
is  endued  with  its  specific  microbe  that  gives  it  stand- 
ing among  the  people  who  believe  in  such  things, 
and  its  inventor  goes  down  in  medical  history  as  a 
benefactor  of  the  race. 

So  the  fears,  the  doubts,  the  poverty,  sin,  sick- 
ness, the  thousand  erroneous  states  of  consciousness 
have  their  microbes.  These  organisms  whose  office 
it  is  to  make  men  miserable,  do  their  work  to  the 


142  Talks  on  Truth 

very  best  of  their  ability.  They  are  not  responsible 
for  their  existence;  they  are  the  formed  vehicles  of 
thought,  and  the  servants  of  those  who  gave  them 
life.  So  it  is  not  to  the  microbes  that  the  wise  regu- 
lator of  affairs  should  look,  but  to  those  who  are 
creating  them,  and  thereby  bringing  into  existence 
discord  and  disease. 

Remedies  beyond  number  are  advertised  for 
microbes,  but  they  are  guaranteed  to  kill  the  little 
wiggler  only.  What  is  needed  is  a  medicine  that 
will  prevent  his  appearance.  To  apply  the  remedy 
to  the  poor  little  microbe  is  like  trying  to  stop  the 
manufacture  of  counterfeit  money  by  destroying  all 
that  is  found  in  circulation. 

All  counterfeit  thought  comes  from  the  intellect, 
which  alone  originates  the  disease  germ  and  the 
destructive  microbe.  We  need  go  no  farther  than 
this  disobedient  Adam  to  find  the  cause  of  all  the  ills 
to  which  humanity  has  become  slave. 

Wisdom  is  not  an  attribute  of  the  intellect.  The 
assumption  of  wisdom  is  the  one  thing  against  which 
the  Lord  God  especially  warned  Adam.  "But  of 
the  tree  of  the  knowledge  of  good  and  evil,  thou 
shall  not  eat  of  it:  for  in  the  day  that  thou  eatest 
thereof  thou  shalt  surely  die." 

This  very  clearly  indicates  the  inability  of  the 
intellect,  on  its  own  account,  to  set  up  a  standard  of 
knowledge  of  good  and  evil ;  it  also  declares  the  end 
to  which  Adam  will  come  if  he  disregards  the  pro- 
hibition specified. 

That  there  is  something  wrong  in  the  standard 
of  good  is  evidenced  by  the  variety  of  opinions  in 
the  world  as  to  what  is  good  and  what  is  evil.  There 


Holy  Microbes  Are  Made  \  43 

should  be  no  question  on  such  vitally  important 
points,  and  there  would  not  be  if  the  intellect  would 
relinquish  its  claim  to  a  knowledge  of  good  and  evil, 
and  relegate  to  the  Spirit  the  offices  of  wisdom  and 
understanding. 

The  intellect  is  the  formative,  character-giving 
mechanism  in  the  man;  it  draws  its  substance  and 
intelligence  from  the  Spirit.  Like  the  prism  through 
which  the  ray  of  white  light  is  passed,  it  shows  the 
potentialities  of  the  Spirit.  If  it  looks  within  and 
seeks  the  guidance  of  the  Spirit,  it  reflects  Divine 
Ideas  upon  the  screen  of  visibility.  This  is  the  plan 
which  the  Lord  has  for  it,  and  it  is  building  accord- 
ing to  that  plan  only  when  it  admits  that  there  is  a 
higher  source  of  wisdom  than  itself,  when  it  submits 
to  wisdom  all  its  own  ideas. 

The  manifestation  of  life  is  through  the  Adam 
consciousness,  and  he  is,  in  a  way,  attached  to  and 
responsible  for  the  forms  thus  made  visible.  Hence 
the  reform — the  transformation — of  existing  con- 
ditions must  be  made  from  the  standpoint  of  Adam 
as  an  important  factor. 

To  ignore  Adam  is  to  slight  one  of  the  estab- 
lished creations  of  Jehovah  God.  If  Adam  was 
not  a  part  of  the  Divine  Plan,  why  was  he  formed 
from  the  dust  of  the  earth,  the  breath  of  life  breathed 
into  him,  and  a  living  soul  capacity  given  to  him  ? 

No,  we  are  not  to  erase  Adam,  but  we  are  to 
transform  him.  He  is  not  a  safe  guide  in  anything — 
his  conclusions  are  derived  from  observation  of  con- 
ditions as  he  sees  them  in  the  external  world.  He 
judges  according  to  appearance,  which  is  but  one 
side  of  the  whole.  Appearances  say  that  microbes 


144  Talks  on  Truth 

are  dangerous  and  destructive,  but  one  who  is  fa- 
miliar with  their  origin  is  not  alarmed,  because  he 
knows  that  there  is  a  power  and  wisdom  stronger 
and  wiser  than  the  ignorant  intellect. 

It  is  to  this  power  that  we  are  compelled  to  go 
before  we  can  right  the  wrongs  that  now  dominate 
the  minds  of  men.  There  is  but  one  fount  of  wis- 
dom, and  that  is  Wisdom  itself. 

The  belief  that  wisdom  is  attained  through  the 
study  of  things,  is  an  error  prevalent  in  this  age. 
They  who  wait  upon  the  Lord  shall  be  wise.  That 
the  wisdom  of  health  can  be  evolved  from  the  study 
of  disease  microbes  is  a  concept  of  the  intellect  in  its 
tendency  to  look  without  instead  of  within.  The 
without,  the  universe  of  things  formed,  is  not  and 
never  can  be  a  source  of  wisdom.  The  things 
formed  are  the  results  of  efforts  to  combine  wisdom 
and  love,  and  their  character  indicates  the  success 
or  failure  of  the  undertaking.  When  wisdom  and 
love  have  been  invoked,  and  their  harmony  made 
manifest  in  the  thing  formed,  God  is  manifest. 

We  love  to  give  "names"  or  character  to  the 
ideas  of  Jehovah  God,  because  it  is  our  office  in  the 
grand  plan  of  creation  to  do  so.  The  glory  of  the 
Father  is  thus  made  manifest  through  the  Son.  In 
no  other  way  can  the  ideas  in  Being  be  made  mani- 
fest, and  man  should  rise  to  the  dignity  of  his  office 
and  formulate  according  to  the  plans  of  Divine 
Mind. 

Disease  germs  and  microbes  would  quickly  dis- 
appear from  the  earth,  if  men  would  consult  God 
before  passing  judgment  upon  his  creations.  It  is 
not  man's  province  to  formulate  anything  but  what 


HOT*  Microbes  Are  Made  1 45 

will  be  a  pleasure  in  God's  eye.  If  he  makes 
microbes,  it  is  because  he  thinks  microbe  thoughts. 
When  he  thinks  God  thoughts  he  will  form  only  the 
beauties  of  nature  and  mankind,  and  there  will  no 
longer  be  anything  in  all  his  world  that  will  cause  a 
fear  or  pang  of  pain.  God  is  not  the  author  of  this 
condition  of  so-called  "progress  from  matter  to 
mind;"  God  is  the  one  source  from  which  and  of 
which  man  makes  his  existence. 

There  is  a  law  of  unfoldment  in  Being,  a  law 
as  exact  as  the  progressive  steps  in  a  mathematical 
problem  in  which  no  error  is  made,  a  law  as  har- 
monious as  that  which  governs  a  musical  production 
where  discord  has  found  no  place.  But  microbes 
and  disease  germs  are  not  a  part  of  this  Divine  Law. 
They  are  as  far  removed  from  it  as  would  be  error 
in  the  steady,  careful  steps  in  the  progressive  unfold- 
ment of  numbers,  or  false  notes  in  symphony  or  song. 

It  does  not  require  labored  arguments  or  hard 
thinking  to  see  how  easily  the  problems  of  life  would 
be  made  orderly  and  divine  if  men  would  let  the 
Lord  into  their  minds.  Jesus  said  the  yoke  was  easy 
and  the  burden  light.  He  was  victor  over  all  the 
hard  conditions  to  which  men  and  women  think 
themselves  yoked,  and  he  made  light  of  sin,  disease, 
and  poverty,  by  annulling  them  and  preaching 
boldly  in  the  face  of  an  adverse  theology  that  it 
was  the  prerogative  of  the  Son  of  man  to  blot  these 
errors  from  the  world  of  mankind. 

There  is  a  royal  road  for  every  man — a  road  in 
which  he  will  be  conscious  of  that  dominion  which 
is  his  by  divine  right.  That  road,  Jesus  said,  leads 
out  from  the  I  AM.  As  Moses  delivered  the  chil- 


146  Talks  on   Truth 

dren  of  Israel  from  the  Egyptian  darkness  of  their 
ignorance  by  affirming  in  their  ears  the  power  of  the 
I  AM,  so  Jesus  gives  us  a  series  of  affirmations  that 
will  deliver  us  from  the  wilderness  of  ignorance. 
His  command  is,  "Keep  my  word."  Then  his 
words  are  set  before  us:  "I  am  the  way,  and  the 
truth,  and  the  life;"  "I  am  the  resurrection,  and  the 
life;"  "I  am  the  light  of  the  world;"  "I  am  meek 
and  lowly  in  heart;"  "Before  Abraham  was  born, 
I  am." 

I  AM  is  the  polar  star  around  which  all  the 
thoughts  of  man  revolve.  Even  the  little,  narrow 
concept  of  the  personal  "I  am"  may  be  led  out  into 
the  consciousness  of  the  great  and  only  I  AM  by 
filling  its  thought  sphere  with  ideas  of  Infinite  Wis- 
dom, Life,  and  Love. 

"Hitch  your  wagon  to  a  star,"  said  Emerson. 
Your  wagon  is  that  which  carries  you  along.  Your 
"I  AM"  is  that  which  carries  you  up  or  down,  to 
heaven  or  to  hell,  according  to  the  idea  to  which 
you  have  attached  it.  Then  hitch  it  to  a  star  and 
let  it  carry  you  to  the  broad  expanse  of  heaven. 
There  is  room  a-plenty — you  will  not  knock  elbows 
with  any  one  if  you  get  out  of  the  surging  crowd 
and  hitch  your  "I  AM"  to  the  star  of  spiritual  under- 
standing. 

Cease  making  disease  microbes,  and  turn  your  at- 
tention to  higher  things.  Make  love  alive  by  think- 
ing love.  Make  wisdom  the  light  of  the  world  by 
affirming  God's  omnipresent  intelligence.  See  in 
mind  the  pure  substance  of  God,  and  it  will  surely 
appear.  This  is  the  way  to  destroy  microbes — this 
is  the  antidote  for  disease  germs.  The  real,  the  en- 


Hor»  Microbes  Are  Made  \  47 

during  things  of  God  are  to  be  brought  into  visibil- 
ity in  just  this  simple  way.  This  is  the  way  the 
I  AM  makes  itself  manifest.  The  method  is  so  easy 
that  the  man  of  great  intellect  passes  it  by;  it  is  so 
plain  that  a  simpleton  may  understand  it.  A  college 
education  is  not  necessary.  You  do  not  have  to 
know  about  anything  whatsoever  except  God.  How 
easy  it  is,  how  light  the  burden!  No  long,  tedious 
years  of  study;  no  delving  into  depths  of  intricate 
theories  and  speculations  about  molecules,  atoms, 
and  ethers,  but  just  a  simple,  childlike  attention 
directed  to  the  everywhere  Spirit,  and  a  heart  filled 
with  love  and  goodness  for  everything.  "I  thank 
thee,  O  Father,  Lord  of  heaven  and  earth,  that 
thou  didst  hide  these  things  from  the  wise  and  un- 
derstanding, and  didst  reveal  them  unto  babes." 

"The  soul  of  things  is  sweet,  the  heart  of  Being 
is  celestial  rest ;  stronger  than  woe  is  will ;  that  which 
was  Good  doth  pass  to  Better,  Best. 

"Ye  suffer  from  yourselves.  None  else  com- 
pels, none  other  holds  you  that  ye  live  and  die,  and 
whirl  upon  the  wheel,  and  hug  and  kiss  its  spokes  of 
agony,  its  tire  of  tears,  its  nave  of  nothingness.  Be- 
hold, I  show  you  truth!  Lower  than  hell,  higher 
than  heaven,  outside  the  utmost  stars,  farther  than 
Brahm  doth  dwell,  before  beginning  and  without 
an  end,  as  space  eternal  and  as  surety  sure,  is  fixed 
a  Power  Divine  which  moves  to  Good ;  only  its  laws 
endure." 


THE   I  AM   IN   ITS   KINGDOM 

Why,  man,  he  doth  bestride  the  narrow  world 
Like  a  Colossus,  and  we  petty  men 
Walk  under  his  huge  legs,  and  peep  about 
To  find  ourselves  dishonorable  graves. 
Men  at  some  times  are  masters  of  their  fates ; 
The  fault,  dear  Brutus,  is  not  in  our  stars. 
But  in  ourselves,  that  we  are  underlings. 

— Shakespeare. 

Ideas  are  hinged — they  swing  in  and  they  swing 
out.  Not  every  one  has  observed  this.  But  every 
one  must  observe  it,  and  note  also  the  swing  of  his 
particular  ideas.  An  idea  that  swings  in  has  a  mis- 
sion. It  is  of  the  Spirit,  and  has  power  to  do  far  be- 
yond an  idea  that  swings  out  and  dissipates  its  forces 
in  the  whirl  at  the  periphery.  On  the  inner  side, 
ideas  behold  the  great  Wisdom  and  attach  them- 
selves to  it;  then  they  lose  their  identity  as  limited 
things  and  take  on  the  Unlimited. 

A  single  idea  bora  of  Wisdom  is  irresistible. 
No  one  can  estimate  the  power  for  good  of  an  idea 
generated  in  the  center  of  the  home  of  ideas,  the 
Christ  within.  When  an  idea  comes  from  that  great 
galaxy  of  supreme  ideas  it  goes  forth  in  strength  and 
harmony.  It  is  a  perfect  sphere  with  no  point  liable 
to  friction  or  collision. 

A  man  once  conceived  the  idea  of  building  a 
ship,  water-tight  above  and  below.  He  put  his 
idea  into  visibility  and  sent  the  ship  forth  on  the 
waves.  At  first  it  rode  the  sea  with  comparative 

148 


The  1  Am  in  Its  Kingdom  1 49 

safety ;  but  storms  came  on,  the  waves  dashed  against 
it,  and  it  went  down.  Why?  Because  he  had  not 
ballasted  it.  It  was  secure  above  and  below  from 
the  elements,  but  it  was  not  equalized  in  the  rolling 
waves. 

You  are  daily,  hourly  conceiving  ideal  ships 
and  sending  them  out  upon  the  waves  of  the  angry 
sea  of  human  thoughts.  They  are  apparently  water- 
tight; they  carry  your  highest  aspirations  and  de- 
sires. You  look  longingly  for  their  return,  but  they 
do  not  come.  Why  is  it?  They  were  staunchly 
built  according  to  human  plans.  But  something  was 
lacking.  You  failed  to  put  your  soul  into  them. 
They  were  shells,  without  depth  of  hold  or  cargo  of 
love. 

All  the  mental  ships  which  you  send  out  upon 
the  turbulent  seas  of  human  thought  must  be  bal- 
lasted with  your  heart's  love  or  they  will  eventually 
founder.  They  may  float  safely  for  a  season,  but 
the  reefs  wait  for  them  in  the  distance,  and  you  may 
watch  in  vain  for  their  return. 

I  AM  expresses  through  /  Will;  it  is  the  business 
of  I  AM  to  know  when  the  /  Will  activities  are 
ideally  true.  Knowing  is  a  part  of  Being  which  I 
AM  appropriates  to  the  end  that  the  works  of  /  Will 
may  accord  with  the  spiritual  universe. 

The  I  AM  is  not  in  itself  power,  wisdom,  love; 
it  is  simply  the  vehicle  to  which  these  realities  har- 
ness themselves. 

In  its  right  relation  in  Being,  I  AM  never  pos- 
sesses or  owns  anything.  All  things  in  the  universe 
are  its  to  use,  but  it  must  not  claim  them  as  personal 
property. 


150  Talks  on  Truth 

If  the  wheel  that  rests  in  the  water  and  communi- 
cates energy  to  the  machinery  of  the  mill,  should 
suddenly  become  possessed  with  conscious  volition 
and  proceed  to  dip  out  a  portion  of  the  stream  as  its 
individual  property,  it  would  well  represent  the  po- 
sition of  the  I  AM  that  attempts  to  separate  its 
powers  and  capacities  from  the  universal. 

The  I  AM  is  pure  Spirit,  without  parts,  passions, 
or  members,  of  any  description.  It  is  the  prism 
through  which  the  white  light  of  Being  is  focused 
and  refracted  on  the  screen  of  visibility  in  multi- 
color. 

But  the  I  AM  is  not  inertia — it  is  ever  spurred 
on  by  an  original  impulse  to  £non>.  To  know  is  not 
a  simple  process  when  a  single  factor  of  Being  is  left 
out  by  him  who  seeks  to  know. 

The  I  AM  has  its  being  in  heaven;  its  home  is 
in  the  realm  of  perfect  ideals,  the  Christ  within,  but 
it  has  its  freedom.  It  loves  to  be.  To  be  is  to  en- 
joy. To  enjoy  is,  for  the  time,  to  be  that  which  we 
enjoy.  When  you  are  absorbed  in  the  recital  of 
an  interesting  story,  you  are  lost  to  all  else.  The 
I  AM  is  for  the  moment  identified  with  that  which 
it  enjoys.  Here  is  the  solution  of  a  great  mystery — 
how  the  I  AM  ever  came  to  separate  itself  from  its 
sphere  of  wisdom. 

But  it  is  wonderfully  simple  when  you  under- 
stand it.  You  are  demonstrating  the  so-called  fall 
of  man  every  time  you  lose  yourself  in  the  whirl  of 
sense  pleasure.  The  mission  of  the  I  AM  is  happi- 
ness. It  seeks  joy  and  bliss ;  they  are  set  before  it  in 
unstinted  measure,  and  it  revels  in  their  intoxicating 


The  I  AM  in  Its  Kingdom  151 

draughts,  but  the  mastery  of  the  higher  mind  should 
ever  be  maintained. 

But  sensations  of  pleasure  originate  in  and  de- 
pend for  their  vitality  upon  the  Center,  and  when 
the  I  AM  follows  off  the  things  and  forgets  the 
source,  it  eventually  finds  the  pleasure  waning.  The 
impetus  grows  less  and  less  until  that  which  in  the 
beginning  was  pleasure  becomes  so  slow  of  action 
that  its  inertia  leaves  the  impression  of  pain. 

"Life,  liberty  and  the  pursuit  of  happiness"  are 
the  inherent  birthright  of  every  one  of  us.  We  exist 
to  that  end,  and  by  our  constant  effort  to  attain  per- 
petual joy  we  recognize  it  as  our  natural  state. 

That  our  efforts  are  not  always  crowned  with 
success  should  cause  us  to  pause  and  consider.  Have 
we  not  left  out  some  factor  necessary  to  happiness, 
and  if  so,  what  is  it? 

We  think  of  heaven  as  a  place  of  unending  hap- 
piness, and  we  have  been  taught  that  it  is  some- 
where in  the  skies.  But  in  the  geography  of  the 
universe,  heaven  has  not  been  authoritatively  marked. 
Jesus  Christ,  of  all  those  claiming  intimate  acquaint- 
ance with  spiritual  things,  gave  heaven  definite  lo- 
cation. He  often  referred  to  the  Father  dwelling 
in  him;  he  also  told  others  that  the  Spirit  of  God 
dwelt  in  them.  As  a  climax  he  definitely  located 
heaven  "within  you." 

This  has  always  been  looked  upon  by  the 
world's  people  as  a  figure  of  speech,  and  even  meta- 
physicians who  have  delved  into  the  abstractions  of 
mind,  have  had  vague  ideas  about  there  being  such  a 
place  as  heaven  within  them.  They  have  said  it 
was  a  state,  a  condition. 


152  Talks  on  Truth 

So  it  is,  but  it  is  also  a  place.  It  is  not  outside 
of  your  body  today,  and  inside  of  it  tomorrow,  nor 
is  it  possible  for  heaven  to  exist  anywhere  but  right 
at  the  center  of  what  seems  to  you  to  be  the  physical. 

This  insistence  upon  the  location  of  heaven  is  a 
startling  proposition  to  those  who  have  postulated 
mind  as  universal,  without  bounds  or  limitations. 

We  are  seeking  to  get  into  the  kingdom  of 
heaven  where  all  things  shall  be  added  unto  us,  and 
it  is  proper  that  we  should  know  where  that  kingdom 
is.  All  that  we  really  know  about  ourselves  at 
present  comes  to  us  through  comparison  with  the 
"things  that  do  appear."  We  have  a  body,  which 
we  clearly  perceive  is  moved  by  an  invisible  prin- 
ciple called  mind.  We  have  never  seen  this  mind, 
nor  felt  it  nor  sensed  it  in  any  way. 

We  know  that  certain  combinations  of  thought 
produce  effects  upon  the  sense  of  man.  The  action 
takes  place  from  our  center  of  consciousness,  our 
physical  body.  Then,  so  far  as  we  are  concerned, 
the  mystery  of  Being  is  wrapped  up  in  and  around 
that  which  we  are  wont  to  call  clay.  Do  not  mistake 
the  proposition  and  assume  that  the  physical  man  as 
he  now  appears  to  your  comprehension  is  the  sum- 
mum  bonum  of  existence.  This  is  not  the  claim. 
The  claim  is  that  to  your  consciousness  the  corporeal 
man  surrounds  and  gives  definite  place  to  that  which 
you  seek — "the  kingdom  of  God  within  you." 

The  argument  is  frequently  brought  forward 
that  the  "lesser  cannot  contain  the  greater."  This 
is  but  a  play  upon  words,  so  far  as  the  relations  of 
mind  are  concerned.  We  know  that  in  Being  there 
can  be  no  greater  and  no  lesser.  Mind  is  not  a 


The  I  AM  in  Its  Kingdom  153 

thing;  Mind  is.  It  is  that  which,  through  orderly 
process,  produces  the  thing.  This  orderly  process, 
we  have  learned  by  observation,  is  from  an  invisible 
center  to  a  visible  circumference.  So  if  anywhere  in 
the  universe  you  behold  a  form,  you  may  know  that 
within  that  form  there  is  a  potential  center  from 
which  spring  all  its  qualities.  That  the  invisible 
cause  is  or  is  not  confined  to  that  form,  is  not  essential 
to  the  proposition.  So  far  as  the  sentient  identity  of 
the  form  itself  is  concerned  its  source  of  intelligence 
and  life  is  always  within,  and  it  can  never  know  any- 
thing about  its  cause  except  from  that  center. 

When  an  astronomer  sees  a  system  of  planets 
describing  mathematical  circles,  he  knows  without 
looking  that  there  is  at  the  center  of  those  circles  a 
power  which  holds  them  in  place.  Every  atom  in 
the  human  body  is  a  miniature  planet  revolving 
about  its  own  invisible  center,  and  all  the  atoms 
revolve  about  a  great  center  within.  I  have  dis- 
covered this  to  be  an  absolute  fact  in  my  own  expe- 
rience. I  have,  by  persistent  practice,  learned  to 
drop  my  attention  from  the  head  to  a  point  under 
the  heart.  This  is  separating  the  I  AM  from  the 
personal,  or  limited  consciousness,  and  connecting 
it  with  the  universal,  or  spiritual  consciousness,  with 
which  it  forms  a  union  at  the  point  mentioned. 
When  my  I  AM  touches  this  inner  center  there 
springs  into  its  consciousness  a  wonderful  vibration, 
and  to  every  part  of  the  body  strong  currents  of 
energy  are  transmitted.  At  this  point  I  seem  to  be 
in  touch  with  all  creation;  the  barriers  of  form  are 
as  nothing;  there  is  only  a  great  sea  of  throbbing 
life. 


154  Talks  on  Truth 

I  am  but  a  novice  in  this  inner  exploration,  but 
I  have  penetrated  far  enough  to  know  that  it  is  the 
undiscovered  country  for  which  we  are  all  seeking. 
I  have  not  only  found  the  invisible  center  of  my  con- 
sciousness, but  many  subcenters,  and  so  many  mar- 
velous things  in  connection  therewith  that  I  cannot, 
for  lack  of  comparisons,  describe  them,  even  if  I 
knew  a  language  that  would  convey  to  the  natural 
man  a  conception  of  their  marvels  and  the  joy  and 
satisfaction  they  give  to  the  soul. 

I  have  proved  to  my  own  satisfaction  that  when 
Jesus  said,  "The  kingdom  of  God  is  within  you," 
he  meant  it  literally  and  not  figuratively.  There  is 
within  every  one  a  place — a  conscious  sphere  of 
mind,  having  all  the  attractions  described  or  im- 
agined as  belonging  to  heaven.  My  most  exalted 
ideas  of  the  joys  of  heaven  never  anticipated  the 
ecstatic  thrill  that  suffuses  my  whole  being  while  I 
rest  in  Spirit  at  this  center  within.  In  the  redemption 
of  man  from  sin,  the  outer  thoughts  are  made  to  con- 
form to  the  inner  ideas.  This  is  regeneration,  in 
which  man  is  saved  from  his  evil  thoughts — Satan — 
and  permanently  united  with  his  good  thoughts — 
Christ.  This  is  my  work  and  your  work — to  con- 
form to  the  within. 

It  seems  marvelous  that  we  should  be  so  totally 
unconscious  of  this  undiscovered  country  right  under 
our  hearts.  When  I  drop  down  there  and  feel  its 
sweetness  and  light,  and  the  inner  voice  tells  me  that 
this  exists  in  every  one  just  as  it  does  in  me,  I  cannot 
comprehend  how  we  have  been  so  long  ignorant  of 
it.  Yet  I  know  that  before  the  discovery  of  the 
circulation  of  the  blood,  men  knew  nothing  about  the 


The  I  AM  in  Its  Kingdom  155 

intricate  canal  system  within  their  own  bodies.  Then 
why  should  it  be  improbable  that  still  deeper  within 
exists  another  realm  on  a  different  plane? 

But  this  kingdom  within  is  not  material — it  is 
spiritual.  In  it  is  the  seat  of  the  King,  and  when 
we  become  sufficiently  acquainted  with  it,  we  shall 
be  able  to  reign  from  the  throne  which  was  prepared 
for  us  from  the  beginning. 

This  inner  country  is  the  domain  of  that  su- 
perior wisdom  which  we  term  the  Christ.  Jesus 
called  this  place  of  wisdom  the  Father  within  him, 
and  to  it  he  ascribed  all  his  power  and  wisdom. 

It  is  not  created  for  our  especial  benefit,  nor  do 
we  evolve  it  through  thinking ;  it  is  that  Word  which 
was  in  the  beginning  with  God,  which  is  with  God, 
which  is  God;  we  simply  recognize  it,  and  through 
that  recognition,  we  realize  its  presence. 

The  theory  that  we  are  progressing  from  a  lower 
to  a  higher  state,  is  not  tenable  when  viewed  from 
this  inner  place  of  understanding.  When  we  touch 
its  shining  shore,  we  suddenly  seem  to  know  that 
we  are  at  home  again ;  that  there  had  somehow  been 
a  departure,  a  separation  of  the  I  AM  from  its 
rightful  place  in  the  bosom  of  the  Father. 

That  man  has  wandered  away  from  and  lost 
consciousness  of  his  wisdom  sphere,  is  claimed  by  all 
ancient  teachers  of  inner  truths.  The  banishment  of 
Adam  from  the  garden  of  Eden  is  an  allegory 
based  upon  this  truth,  and  the  four  Gospels  reiterate 
again  and  again  that  the  mission  of  Jesus  of  Naza- 
reth was  to  find  that  which  was  lost ;  not  that  the  real 
man  is  lost  nor  in  condemnation,  but  the  I,  the  man 


156  Talks  on  Truth 

identity,  has  gone  "into  a  far  country"  and  is  lost 
to  his  spiritual  consciousness. 

That  this  sphere  of  wisdom  is  present  in  what 
has  come  to  be  known  as  the  subjective  conscious- 
ness of  man,  is  demonstrated  in  a  certain  measure 
in  hypnotic  experiments.  The  I  of  the  hypnotized 
subject  is  temporarily  separated  from  the  external 
and  thrown  onto  the  internal  plane,  where  is  func- 
tions in  marvelous  manner  in  matters  pertaining  to 
mental  action.  This  has  given  rise  to  the  theory  of 
two  egos,  the  subjective  and  the  objective. 

The  fact  is  that  there  is  but  one  ego,  one  I,  and 
its  domain  of  consciousness  is  not  limited  to  the 
things  of  sense,  but  is  meant  to  range  all  creation 
from  the  within  to  the  without.  Instead  of  these 
sporadic  cases  of  a  higher  sense  in  man  being  con- 
sidered abnormal,  it  is  time  for  us  to  know  that  they 
are  normal,  and  that  the  limitations  and  ignorance  of 
the  five  sense  man  is  the  abnormal. 

The  regaining  of  this  lost  consciousness  is  a  mat- 
ter that  rests  between  man  and  God.  We  cannot 
get  into  this  "kingdom"  through  such  artificial  means 
as  mesmerism,  hypnotism,  mediumship,  or  any  of 
the  so-called  short  cuts  to  spirituality. 

The  I  AM  can  never  be  coerced  or  robbed  of 
its  perfect  freedom,  and  all  attempts  to  do  so  will 
meet  with  final  disaster.  When  we  have  once  de- 
cided to  return  to  the  Father's  house,  to  regain  this 
lost  estate  within,  it  is  an  easy  road.  It  may  seem 
hard  at  the  start,  because  we  have  to  throw  away  so 
much  baggage,  but  it  gets  easier  as  we  get  closer 
and  closer  to  the  great  heart  of  the  loving  Father. 
A  Helper  has  been  provided,  the  "Spirit  of  Truth 


The  I  AM  in  Its  Kingdom  1 57 

.  .  .  shall  guide  you  into  all  the  truth;"  all  we  have 
to  do  is  to  seek  honestly  and  sincerely  to  enter  in. 
"Seek,  and  ye  shall  find;  knock,  and  it  shall  be 
opened  unto  you."  This  promise  is  to  every  one. 


HOW   SHALL  THE  DEAD  BE   RAISED 

As  disciples  of  Jesus  Christ,  we  are  commanded 
to  "  raise  the  dead."  To  clearly  understand  this 
part  of  our  mission,  we  should  acquaint  ourselves 
with  the  philosophy  of  death ;  we  should  know  what 
it  is  and  how  it  came  about. 

Death  is  denned  by  Webster  as  "permanent 
cessation  of  all  the  vital  functions."  This,  like  all 
definitions  derived  from  sense  observation,  is  quite 
incomplete.  It  gives  us  no  idea  of  the  relation  which 
death  bears  to  its  polar  opposite,  life,  nor  of  the 
process  through  which  life  passes  in  order  to  appear 
absent  in  that  which  has  "cessation  of  the  vital  func- 
tions." Following  this  to  a  final  analysis,  we  find 
that  we  must  understand  about  life  before  we  can 
apprehend  that  appearance  of  its  absence  in  a  form 
called  dead. 

In  this,  as  in  every  other  investigation  of  Truth, 
from  the  correct  premise,  we  find  that  we  can  never 
get  at  its  right  relation  by  examining  the  negative 
side.  One  could  not  correct  the  errors  in  a  mathe- 
matical calculation  without  first  understanding  the 
rules  governing  numbers.  Some  people  think  they 
can  learn  how  to  be  healthy  by  studying  disease; 
but  they  get  further  and  further  into  disease  when 
they  study  it  as  an  entity.  The  study  of  health  as 
a  real  principle  involved  in  the  being  of  man,  leads 
to  the  discovery  of  its  foundation — mental  harmony. 

In  metaphysics  we  find  the  early  students  in- 

158 


Hor»  Shall  the  Dead  Be  Raised  1 59 

sisting  upon  having  explained  to  them  all  about  evil 
— how  it  originated,  and  why  it  has  place  in  exist- 
ence, when  good  is  the  origin  of  all  that  is.  They 
worry  and  stew  and  manipulate  their  thoughts  over 
this  question,  until  in  sheer  desperation  they,  as  a 
rule,  give  it  up.  The  tangle  of  a  good  God  and  a 
bad  devil  will  not  straighten  itself  out  from  their 
plane  of  perception.  The  trouble  is  that  they  do  not 
know  enough  about  the  good.  They  want  to  know 
all  about  the  evil  without  first  being  acquainted  with 
the  positive  side  of  the  question.  They  are  like 
children  who  know  nothing  about  the  harmony  of 
music,  yet  insist  upon  a  full  explanation  of  discords 
before  they  will  go  on  with  their  lessons.  To  know 
about  evil,  we  must  first  become  thoroughly  fa- 
miliar with  the  good. 

We  find  in  our  investigation  of  the  character  and 
place  of  death,  that  studying  it  by  itself  we  can 
get  no  starting  point  for  even  a  single  fact.  It  has 
no  foundation  in  itself.  Every  definition  that  we  can 
frame,  implies  death  to  be  the  absence  of  something, 
and  we  are  forced  to  inquire  into  that  which  is  absent 
before  we  can  know  the  meaning  of  the  condition 
which  that  absence  appears  to  bring  about. 

When  we  have  made  ourselves  familiar  with 
life,  we  shall  know  all  about  death  without  study- 
ing it  at  all.  We  shall  know  it  from  its  true  stand- 
point— absolute  negation — that  which  might  be  if 
life  were  not  all.  Those  who  worry  over  the  cause 
of  evil  always  find,  when  they  drop  their  investiga- 
tions from  the  negative  standpoint  and  go  over  to 
the  positive  and  make  themselves  familiar  with  the 
Good,  that  all  their  questions  are  answered  by  the 


160  Talks  on    Truth 

Good  itself,  because  it,  and  it  only,  can  explain  all 
the  vagaries  that  arise  in  the  consciousness  where  it 
is  not  permanent. 

A  study  of  life  reveals  it  to  be  an  expression  of 
Being  that  gives  rise  to  animation,  vivacity,  vigor, 
energy.  We  learn  that  life  may  appear  in  a  form  in 
superabundance,  accompanied  by  but  little  intelli- 
gence. We  perceive  that  the  character  of  life  is  de- 
termined by  the  intelligence  it  exercises.  We  find 
that  the  life  expressed  in  and  through  our  own  bodies 
requires  the  husbanding,  directing  power  of  our  in- 
telligence. Life  gives  animation  and  vigor  to  the 
animal  man,  stimulating  the  lower  as  well  as  the 
higher  faculties.  Right  here  many  people  do  not 
exercise  wisdom  in  their  living.  They  think  that 
because  life  stimulates  the  faculties  these  should 
all  be  gratified  in  the  way  in  which  their  desire  indi- 
cates. The  desires  of  the  animal  man  are  thus  al- 
lowed their  full  exercise,  and  the  share  of  life  force 
which  should  go  to  the  intellectual  and  spiritual  man 
is  wasted,  and  he  is  robbed  of  his  sustenance  because 
he  does  not  understand  the  law  of  his  being. 

We  find  that  life  is  a  principle;  that  it  is  in- 
herent in  Being,  everywhere  present  at  all  times; 
that  it  is  manifest  to  consciousness  through  vehicles; 
that  these  vehicles  are  animated  by  life  according  to 
their  capacity  or  power  to  express  it;  that  that  ca- 
pacity or  power  of  expression  is  governed  by  the 
idea  of  life  which  is  infused  into  it  by  the  generative 
energy  of  the  I  AM. 

Electricity,  for  illustration,  is  everywhere  as  in- 
visible potentiality.  It  may  be  brought  into  expres- 
sion and  use  through  a  motor.  Some  people  think 


Hot»  Shall  the  Dead  Be  Raised  1 61 

that  the  size  of  an  electric  motor  is  the  measure  of 
its  power.  This  is  not  true.  It  is  the  character  of 
the  coiled  wires  within  that  measures  it  capacity. 
Fine  wire  closely  wound  gives  power  to  the  motor. 
So  a  fine,  intense,  high  perception  of  life,  accom- 
panied by  a  burning  desire  to  express  it  in  its  purity, 
marks  the  highest  form  of  the  animated  vehicle  of 
God's  vitality. 

Man  is  the  highest  expression  of  God;  he  mani- 
fests God's  life  through  an  external  vehicle  called 
the  body.  Physiologists  long  ago  discovered  that  it 
is  not  the  size  of  the  body  nor  its  beauty,  that  de- 
termines its  vitality. 

Life  in  the  body  is  governed  by  the  hold  the 
I  AM  has  upon  the  idea  of  life.  Its  character  is  also 
tempered  by  the  conservation  which  judgment  and 
discretion  exercise  over  the  other  factors  of  expres- 
sion. But  let  the  idea  of  life  be  firmly  grasped  and 
put  into  practical  use  through  thought  and  word, 
and  the  other  factors  fall  into  line. 

The  energy  generated  by  an  electric  motor  is 
expressed  through  action,  and  a  suitable  medium  for 
its  exercise  must  be  provided.  We  find  a  parallel 
to  this  in  our  own  lives.  Thinking  and  speaking  are 
our  methods  of  creating  energy,  and  our  bodies  are 
the  vehicles  acted  upon  by  the  energy  developed. 
We  must  thinf?  l^6  mto  the  living.  Jesus,  at  the  rais- 
ing of  Lazarus,  first  "lifted  up  his  eyes."  He  thus, 
through  mental  dynamics,  connected  his  idea  of  the 
universality  of  life  with  the  universal  Life  itself, 
and  he  was  able  to  say,  "I  thank  thee  that  thou 
heardest  me." 


162  Talks  on  Truth 

"And  when  he  had  thus  spoken,  he  cried  with  a 
loud  voice,  Lazarus,  come  forth." 

This  event  shows  that  we  are  to  do  more  than 
merely  perceive  the  omnipresence  of  life;  to  fulfill 
the  whole  law  of  manifestation  we  must  speak  life 
into  visibility. 

Yet  again,  we  may  perceive  the  truth  that  life 
is  everywhere  waiting  to  be  spoken  into  all  forms, 
and  with  a  clear  understanding  of  this  truth,  we  may 
speak  the  words  of  life  and  yet  not  get  the  antici- 
pated results.  What  is  the  reason? 

Going  deeper  into  the  factors  constituting  Being, 
we  discover  that  life  or  energy  must  have  substance 
through  which  to  make  itself  manifest  to  conscious- 
ness. If  we  have  wasted  our  substance  in  riotous 
living,  our  word  is  made  fruitless  because  of  lack  of 
material  upon  which  to  work. 

We  should  be  just  as  careful  of  the  stored-up 
substance  of  the  consciousness,  of  which  the  body  is 
the  lower  stratum,  as  we  are  of  the  thoughts  and 
words  we  express.  If  our  substance  is  being  wasted 
in  the  lusts  of  the  flesh,  our  word  will  lack  in  life- 
giving  quality.  Jesus  cast  out  of  his  consciousness 
the  limitations  of  matter;  he  mastered  the  appetites 
and  passions  of  the  animal  man  and  dissolved  all 
fear  of  evil. 

Jesus  demonstrated  the  law  of  God,  and  his 
word  was  with  power.  He  became  the  word  of 
God  incarnate,  because  he  fulfilled  all  the  require- 
ments of  the  law. 

This  is  the  privilege  of  every  man.  Whoever 
dedicates  his  whole  life  to  the  supreme  Good,  and 
by  devotion,  right  thinking,  right  doing,  right  acting, 


Hov>  Shall  the  Dead  Be  Raised  1 63 

pure  living,  and  pure  speaking,  fulfills  the  law,  may 
have  all  the  power  of  Jesus.  God  is  no  respecter  of 
persons,  but  he  requires  an  exact  observance  of  the 
law  to  the  least  jot  and  tittle. 

So  we  say  that  death  cannot  be  explained  with- 
out first  having  an  acquaintance  with  life,  an  ac- 
quaintance with  life  that  carries  with  it  an  acquaint- 
ance with  God.  We  find  that,  every  time  we  seek 
to  know  the  origin  of  an  effect,  we  must  go  back  to 
the  supreme  Cause  before  we  can  get  a  complete  ex- 
planation. 

In  the  matter  of  life,  we  discover,  by  following 
all  the  clues  given  us  in  our  own  experiences,  that 
they  point  to  intelligence  as  well  as  to  force.  In 
other  words,  life  falls  far  short  of  its  mission  if  it  is 
not  equalized  by  intelligence.  Yet  thousands  who 
are  seeking  health,  which  means  more  life,  have  no 
especial  desire  to  become  acquainted  with  God. 
Many  think  that  health  and  fullness  of  life  may  be 
had  without  him,  and  when  asking  the  help  of  a 
metaphysician,  they  often  stipulate  that  they  shall 
not  be  given  any  religious  doctrines  with  the  treat- 
ments. They  might  with  like  consistency  engage  a 
locomotive  without  an  engineer.  All  the  ills  and  dis- 
cords of  humanity  may  be  traced  to  one  error — the 
indiscriminate  and  thoughtless  use  of  life  separated 
from  intelligence. 

What  men  need  above  all  else  in  this  day  is  more 
wisdom — more  discretion  in  the  use  of  the  life  they 
have.  More  life  with  the  same  old  destructive  ig- 
norance in  using  it,  would  but  add  to  their  misery. 

Yet  God  does  not  dictate  what  shall  be  man's 
choice  in  this  or  in  any  other  act.  If  man  finds  the 


164  Talks  on  Truth 

law  through  which  life  is  made  manifest  in  his  con- 
sciousness, he  may  use  it  blindly  and  ignorantly  if  he 
so  elects.  But  he  must  also  abide  by  the  results,  and 
this  is  where  man  sets  up  his  wail  of  sorrow ;  he  does 
not  like  to  reap  his  sowing. 

Death  came  into  our  world  through  the  igno- 
rant use  of  life,  and  death  can  be  put  out  only  by  a 
wise  use  of  life.  Death  is  the  result  of  a  wrong 
concept  of  life  and  its  use.  In  the  beginning  of 
man's  experiments  with  the  powers  of  Being,  he  had 
no  concept  of  death.  His  consciousness  was  intact 
and  his  unfoldment  in  wisdom  was  gradual  and  or- 
derly. But  his  desire  to  experiment  predominated. 
Sensation  was  sweet  and  enticing;  it  absorbed  so 
much  of  his  attention  that  he  forgot  wisdom — he 
"hid"  from  his  Lord — and  the  result  is  an  absence 
from  his  Eden,  or  the  Divine  Harmony  of  the  law. 

When  there  is  disorder  in  the  working  parts  of 
a  machine,  it  breaks  down  or  flies  to  pieces.  That 
is  just  what  occurred  in  man's  body.  When  intelli- 
gence was  no  longer  present  in  its  full  complement 
in  his  consciousness,  there  was  lack  of  harmony,  and 
this  resulted  in  such  disorder  that  the  parts  flew 
asunder — soul  and  body  separated,  and  man  named 
this  dissolution  death.  Then  in  its  train,  the  fear 
and  horror  caused  by  this  dissolution  was  imaged 
into  man's  mind  and  he  made  it  a  secondary  cause — 
so  we  find  the  mere  belief  of  death  in  the  world 
today  slaying  its  thousands. 

In  raising  the  dead  there  are,  then,  two  factors 
to  deal  with.  The  idea  of  the  reality  of  death  and 
the  fear  of  death  have  both  become  destructive  be- 
liefs in  the  race  consciousness,  and  they  must  be  taken 


Hon>  Shall  the  Dead  Be  Raised  1 65 

up  and  dissolved.  The  total  unreality  of  death  must 
be  portrayed  to  the  deluded  consciousness.  The 
omnipresence  and  omnipotence  of  life  is  beyond  dis- 
pute, and  there  can  be  no  question  but  that  death 
is  a  condition  set  up  in  human  consciousness  alone. 
God  is  not  dead;  he  does  not  recognize  or  counte- 
nance death ;  neither  does  man,  when  freed  from  its 
delusion.  Jesus  said,  "Follow  me;  and  leave  the 
dead  to  bury  their  own  dead." 

The  first  step  in  demonstrating  over  death  is  to 
get  the  belief  entirely  out  of  the  mind  that  it  is  God- 
ordained,  or  that  it  is  of  force  or  effect  anywhere  in 
the  realm  of  pure  Being. 

The  next  step  is  to  live  so  harmoniously  that  the 
whole  consciousness  will  be  not  only  resurrected 
from  its  belief  in  death,  but  also  so  vivified  and  ener- 
gized with  the  idea  of  undying  life  that  it  cannot 
dissolve  or  separate. 

We  regard  the  apostle's  words,  "Dead  through 
your  trespasses  and  sins,"  as  metaphorical.  But  an 
analysis  of  man  in  the  supermundane  part  of  his 
being,  reveals  that  sin  or  departure  from  Divine  Law 
in  the  use  of  a  faculty,  actually  results  in  its  death. 
That  is,  after  violent  exercise  of  a  power  there  is 
such  reaction  that  it  goes  into  a  comatose  state  or 
"sleep  of  death."  Death  is  the  failure  on  the  part 
of  man  to  sustain  harmonious  life  in  the  body. 

Death  and  sleep  are  brothers  in  a  metaphysical 
sense.  The  life  action  is  never  wholly  withdrawn 
from  all  parts  of  a  form,  but  there  is  such  cessation 
of  vitality  that  dissolution  of  the  outer  shell  takes 
place  in  the  experience  named  death.  But  Jesus 
pronounced  death  to  be  sleep,  and  said  that  the 


1 66  Talks  on  Truth 

sleeper  could  be  awakened  when  the  vitality  was  re- 
stored in  Divine  Order.  Jesus  said  Lazarus  was 
asleep,  and  "I  go,  that  I  may  awake  him  out  of 
sleep." 

But  his  disciples  did  not  see  deeply,  and  took 
for  granted  that  Lazarus  had  merely  fallen  into  a 
trance  or  prolonged  sleep,  and  said,  "Lord,  if  he 
is  fallen  asleep,  he  will  recover." 

"Then  Jesus  therefore  said  unto  them  plainly, 
Lazarus  is  dead." 

Paul  frequently  referred  to  those  who  had  dis- 
solved the  body  as  brethren  who  had  "fallen 
asleep." 

The  Lord  told  Daniel,  "But  go  thou  thy  way 
till  the  end  be ;  for  thou  shall  rest,  and  shall  stand  in 
thy  lot,  al  ihe  end  of  ihe  days"  (Dan.  12:13). 

Our  poels  in  iheir  inspired  momenls  have  caughl 
ihis  Irulh,  and  our  lileralure  is  replele  wilh  refer- 
ences lo  ihe  "sleep  of  dealh."  Hamlel,  in  his  ofl- 
quoled  soliloquy,  opens  lo  us  in  a  remarkable  way 
ihe  melaphysics  of  dealh: 

To  die,  to  sleep; 

To  sleep?     Perchance  to  dream !     Ay,  there's  the  rub; 
For  in  that  sleep  of  death  what  dreams  may  come. 
When  we  have  shuffled  off  this  mortal  coil. 
Must  give  us  pause  .   .   . 

We  are  nol  afraid  lo  go  lo  sleep  al  nighl,  yel 
every  lime  we  lie  down  and  fall  inlo  unconscious- 
ness of  ihe  body,  we  are  enacling  in  a  small  way  ihe 
sleep  of  dealh.  In  one  case  ihe  soul  leaves  ihe 
body  for  a  few  hours  and  again  lakes  it  up — in  the 
olher  ihe  soul  leaves  ihe  body  lo  mortal  dissolution ; 


Hov>  Shall  the  Dead  Be  Raised  1 67 

yet  it  does  not  fail  to  return  in  due  time  and  take 
up  a  body — so  long  as  it  believes  in  the  limitations 
of  sense.  In  the  sleep  of  a  single  night,  the  one  with 
a  clear  conscience  rests  peacefully  and  is  strength- 
ened for  another  day's  experience.  But  the  guilty, 
anxious,  worried  sleeper  is  haunted  by  dreams. 

The  experience  of  the  death-sleeper  is  similar. 
If  the  life  of  such  a  one  has  been  according  to  the 
golden  rule,  he  "wraps  the  drapery  of  his  couch 
about  him  and  lies  down  to  pleasant  dreams."  His 
soul  basks  in  the  sunshine  of  a  world  Elysian  and  his 
hope  of  heaven  is  for  a  season  fulfilled. 

This,  however,  is  but  the  rest  that  prepares  him 
for  another  day's  experience  in  the  workshop  of 
Being,  and  like  Daniel,  he  must  again  "stand  in 
thy  lot,  at  the  end  of  the  days."  This  process  is  re- 
peated again  and  again,  until  man  discovers  that 
there  is  a  law  of  living  that  obviates  this  oft-repeated 
"sleep  of  death."  That  law  is  revealed  to  all  who 
seek  to  do  the  will  of  God  and  thereby  to  fulfill  the 
law  of  life. 

Here  is  where  we  find  ourselves  today.  We 
know  this  law  of  life  is  based  in  mind  action,  and 
that,  through  the  mind,  we  may  resurrect  ourselves 
from  the  dead. 

As  we  explore  the  mental  realm,  which  is  our 
causative  thought,  we  find  it  filled  with  a  whole 
legion  of  narrow  beliefs,  foolish,  ignorant  beliefs, 
selfish  beliefs,  and  discordant  beliefs.  These  we 
have  lumped  together  and  denominated  "mortal 
mind,"  or  "carnal  mind." 

It  is  here  we  first  do  our  "raising  of  the  dead." 
Each  of  these  beliefs  of  mortality  is  a  sin.  The 


168  Talks  on  Truth 

meaning  of  "sin"  is  "missing  the  mark,"  and  these 
sense  limitations  miss  the  mark  of  Divine  Truth. 
The  light  of  Truth  must  be  turned  into  our  con- 
sciousness and  each  of  these  sleepers  awakened. 
Some  of  them  may  seem  for  a  time  beyond  our 
power  to  resurrect,  and  our  most  sanguine  thoughts 
lack  faith  at  the  prospect,  and  cry  out,  "Lord,  by 
this  time  the  body  decayeth." 

But  the  Christ  power  is  with  us.  "Said  I  not 
unto  thee,  that,  if  thou  believedst,  thou  shouldst 
see  the  glory  of  God?" 

All  things  are  possible  to  them  that  believe  in 
the  power  of  God  within,  waiting  to  be  made  mani- 
fest at  their  word.  Then  send  forth  that  word  and 
say  to  every  sleeping  belief  of  sense,  "Lazarus,  come 
forth!" 

If  you  do  not  believe  in  the  power  of  the  Spirit 
to  resurrect  your  consciousness  from  its  tomb  of 
earthly  superstitions,  of  course  you  may  make  no 
effort  to  do  it.  But  if  you  have  faith  that  it  can  be 
done,  pou  can  do  it. 

Mental  beliefs  of  every  kind  do  take  up  their 
abode  in  the  consciousness  and  make  a  home  there. 
If  you  believe  in  old  age  and  bodily  decrepitude 
and  decay,  you  will  find  that  all  the  little  cells 
throughout  your  organism  are  carrying  in  their 
depths  just  such  pictures,  as  the  clear  waters  of  the 
lake  reflect  the  trees  and  the  clouds.  If  you  want 
these  obedient  little  cells  of  your  soul  and  body  to 
reflect  pictures  of  health  and  vigor  undying,  hold 
before  them,  in  the  sky  of  your  mind,  clear  images  of 
these  perfect  states.  Not  only  hold  such  images  be- 
fore them,  but  demand  that  they  shall  express  them 


Hoi»  Shall  the  Dead  Be  Raised  \  69 

perfectly.  And  do  not  forget  to  conserve  your 
bodily  energies  by  pure,  careful  thinking  and  living, 
in  order  that  you  may  have  the  transparent  substance 
in  which  your  true  thought  images  may  be  planted, 
and,  in  their  course,  brought  to  fruitage. 

Many  who  are  faithful  in  holding  right  mental 
images  do  not  get  results,  because  they  lack  a  re- 
ceptacle— they  let  the  lusts  of  the  flesh  dissipate  all 
the  clear  water  of  life,  and  their  good  thoughts  and 
words  are  returned  unto  them  void.  Guard  all  the 
powers  of  your  being,  if  you  would  resurrect  them 
from  the  dead.  They  do  not  stand  alone,  but  are 
dependent  one  on  another,  and  must  all  be  brought 
into  subjection  to  the  Christ  of  God. 

Paul  said,  "Every  man  that  striveth  in  the 
games  exerciseth  self-control  in  all  things." 

The  resurrection  of  the  dead  is  the  sure  and  cer- 
tain work  of  the  true  Christian. 

We  know  that  Jesus  Christ  is  the  example  which 
we  are  to  follow,  and  we  say  with  Paul,  "If  the 
dead  are  not  raised,  neither  hath  Christ  been  raised : 

"And  if  Christ  hath  not  been  raised,  your  faith 
is  vain ;  ye  are  yet  in  your  sins.  Then  they  also  that 
are  fallen  asleep  in  Christ  have  perished  .  .  . 

"But  now  hath  Christ  been  raised  from  the  dead, 
the  first-fruits  of  them  that  are  asleep. 

"For  since  by  man  came  death,  by  man  came 
also  the  resurrection  of  the  dead. 

"For  as  in  Adam  all  die,  so  also  in  Christ  shall 
all  be  made  alive."  And 

"The  last  enemy  that  shall  be  abolished  is 
death." 


THE  DEVELOPMENT  OF  DIVINE  LOVE 

O  Jerusalem,  Jerusalem,  that  killeth  the  prophets,  and 
stoneth  them  that  are  sent  unto  her!  how  often  would  I 
have  gathered  thy  children  together,  even  as  a  hen  gathereth 
her  chickens  under  her  wings,  and  ye  would  not! 

Jesus  weeping  over  Jerusalem  is  the  picture  of 
a  great  love  welling  up  in  the  heart  and  flowing  out 
unto  all  the  ends  of  the  earth — the  love  of  the  good 
Father  for  his  erring  and  willful  children. 

Such  is  the  love  of  Christ  for  his  own;  such  is 
the  love  of  God  through  Christ  for  all  creation. 

We  may  talk  about  the  wisdom  of  God,  but 
the  love  of  God  must  be  felt  in  the  heart.  It  can- 
not be  described,  and  one  who  has  not  felt  it  can 
have  no  concept  of  it  from  the  descriptions  of  others. 
But  the  more  we  talk  about  love,  the  stronger  it 
grows  in  the  consciousness,  and  if  we  persist  in  think- 
ing loving  thoughts  and  speaking  loving  words,  we 
are  sure  to  bring  into  our  experience  the  feeling  of 
that  great  love  that  is  beyond  description — the  very 
love  of  God. 

It  is  popularly  taught  and  believed  that  there  is 
but  one  love — that  God  is  Love  and  that  all  love 
is  from  him,  hence  all  love  is  God's  love. 

Love  is  a  Divine  Principle  and  can  be  known 
in  its  purity  by  touching  it  at  its  fountainhead. 
There  it  is  not  tinged  in  any  way  by  man's  forma- 
tive thought,  but  flows  forth  a  pure,  pellucid  stream 
of  infinite  ecstasy.  It  has  no  consciousness  of  good 
or  evil,  pure  or  impure,  but  pours  itself  out  in  great 
170 


The  Development  of  Divine  Love  1  71 

oceans  of  living  magnetic  power,  to  be  used  by 
whosoever  will. 

Man  has  a  faculty  through  which  he  receives 
love  from  Being;  this  faculty  is  commonly  called 
the  heart.  The  heart,  however,  is  but  the  visible 
expression  of  an  invisible  center  of  consciousness. 
The  sense  man  sees  the  heart,  but  the  soul  sees  an 
inner  faculty  in  man  through  which  he  may  express 
an  attribute  of  Being.  By  his  word,  man  calls  his 
powers  into  activity  that  through  them  he  may  mani- 
fest God. 

Jesus  was  the  orderly  man  of  God,  manifesting 
under  Divine  Law  the  attributes  of  Being,  Jesus 
"called  unto  him  his  disciples;"  that  is,  by  his  word 
he  spiritually  quickened  and  educated  his  twelve 
faculties.  Peter,  faith  active  in  the  thinking  faculty, 
is  the  first  disciple  called.  Peter  is  the  rock  founda- 
tion of  that  consciousness  which  is  the  church  of 
Christ.  You  will  find  that  the  character  of  your 
whole  consciousness  depends  upon  how  you  think. 
You  may  have  great  love,  but  unless  you  guide  it 
with  right  thoughts  it  will  not  build  up  a  harmonious 
consciousness.  Love  poured  through  the  heart  of 
a  mother  who  has  fear  in  her  thought,  shatters  the 
body  of  a  delicate  child.  The  thinker  must  be 
strong  and  sure  in  his  grasp  upon  right  thoughts. 
The  second  disciple  is  Andrew,  brother  to  Peter; 
he  represents  strength.  James  represents  judgment, 
discrimination,  the  faculty  that  chooses  the  good  and 
eschews  the  evil.  This  faculty  must  be  brought  out 
before  love  in  its  fullness  is  safe  in  the  life  of  man. 
Love  has  not  will  and  volition,  except  as  they  are 
infused  into  it  by  the  other  faculties.  John  is  love, 


172  Talks  on  Truth 

and  he  leaned  on  the  Master's  bosom.  This  is  to 
symbolize  the  innocence,  tenderness,  and  dependence 
of  love.  Peter  is  bold,  impetuous,  executive — af- 
firms his  undying  allegiance  to  the  Master  one  mo- 
ment and  denies  him  the  next;  but  the  loyalty  and 
constancy  of  love  were  dominant  in  the  character  of 
John. 

We  find  that  these  four  faculties,  evenly  bal- 
anced, will  form  the  foundation  of  a  harmonious 
body  and  mind. 

You  must  think,  and  think  with  faith  in  both 
God  and  yourself — that  is  Peter. 

You  must  think  with  strength  and  power — that 
is  Andrew. 

You  must  think  with  judgment  and  discretion — 
that  is  James. 

You  must  center  all  your  thought,  your  strength, 
your  judgment  in  love — that  is  John. 

To  Peter  (the  faithful  thinker),  is  given  the  key 
to  the  kingdom  of  heaven,  but  he  can  never  open  the 
gate  until  he  has  reconciled  all  the  other  faculties. 
Many  people  in  this  day  have  found  how  much  de- 
pends upon  right  thinking,  and  they  are  counting  on 
getting  into  the  kingdom  of  health  and  harmony, 
by  holding  good  thoughts  only.  They  have  not 
always  taken  into  consideration  that  the  think- 
ing faculty  is  merely  the  executive  power  in  the 
consciousness,  and  that  it  depends  upon  many  other 
faculties  for  the  material  out  of  which  its  thoughts 
are  formed. 

To  think  without  strength  is  to  bring  forth 
weakly — without  effect. 

To  think  without  judgment  is  to  bring   forth 


The  Development  of  Divine  Love  I  73 

malformed  mental  creations,  good  and  evil,  spirit 
and  matter,  sickness  and  health,  life  and  death,  and 
the  thousand  other  Babylonish  conditions  found  in 
the  world. 

To  think  without  love  is  to  bring  forth  hate,  dis- 
cord, and  inharmony. 

So  it  is  not  thought  alone  that  opens  the  way 
into  the  kingdom,  but  a  right  use  of  all  the  powers 
of  mind  and  body  centered  in  thought. 

Thinking  gives  color,  tone,  shape,  character,  to 
all  creation,  but  the  essences  or  materials  of  creation 
are  drawn  from  the  realms  of  Spirit. 

In  the  world  we  find  love  so  turned  awry  by 
wrong  thinking  that  it  does  not  represent  God.  In 
its  beginning  it  came  forth  from  God,  but  it  has  been 
taken  into  the  "far  country"  of  error  thought  and 
there  wasted  in  riotous  living. 

Error  thought  has  put  greed  into  love,  and  we 
have  the  "root  of  all  evil,"  the  love  of  money. 

Error  thought  has  said  to  love,  "We  are  flesh 
and  blood ;  this  is  my  child,  this  is  my  husband,  my 
father,  my  mother,  my  sister,  my  brother.  We  are 
separate  from  others."  Thus  error  thought  has 
made  love  to  serve  it  in  family  selfishness. 

"And  he  stretched  forth  his  hand  towards  his 
disciples,  and  said,  Behold,  my  mother  and  my 
brethren!  For  whosoever  shall  do  the  will  of  my 
Father  who  is  in  heaven,  he  is  my  brother,  and 
sister,  and  mother."  This  is  the  love  of  God  in  its 
purity,  fresh  from  the  fountainhead. 

Wherever  love  is  tainted  with  selfishness,  we 
may  know  that  error  thought  has  made  muddy  its 


1  74  Talks  on  Truth 

clear  stream,  so  that  it  no  longer  represents  the  purity 
of  its  Source. 

Love  is  the  drawing  power  of  mind.  It  is  the 
magnet  of  the  universe,  and  about  it  may  be  clus- 
tered all  the  attributes  of  Being,  by  one  who  thinks 
in  Divine  Order. 

Many  who  have  found  the  law  of  true  thinking 
and  its  effect,  wonder  why  supply  does  not  come  to 
them  after  months  and  years  of  holding  thoughts  of 
bounty.  It  is  because  they  have  not  developed  love. 
They  have  formed  the  right  image  in  mind,  but 
the  magnet  that  draws  the  substance  from  the  store- 
house of  Being  has  not  been  set  into  action. 

To  demonstrate  supply,  we  must  think  supply, 
and  thus  form  it  in  the  consciousness.  We  must 
conserve  all  the  ideas  of  substance  in  the  mind — 
and  also  the  fluids  of  the  body,  their  representatives 
— because  we  must  have  a  base  for  our  form.  We 
must  vibrate  the  love  center  in  thought,  word,  and 
act.  Then  there  will  come  to  us  on  the  wings  of 
invisibility  that  which  will  satisfy  every  need.  This 
is  the  secret  of  demonstrating  plenty  from  the  invis- 
ible ethers. 

"Love  .  .  .  taketh  not  account  of  evil." 

Love  never  sees  anything  wrong  in  that  which 
it  loves.  If  it  did,  it  would  not  be  pure  love.  Pure 
love  is  without  discriminating  power.  It  simply 
pours  itself  out  upon  the  object  of  its  affection,  and 
takes  no  account  of  the  result.  By  so  doing,  love 
sometimes  casts  its  pearls  before  swine,  but  its  power 
is  so  great  that  it  transforms  all  it  touches. 

Do  not  be  afraid  to  pour  out  your  love  upon 
all  the  so-called  evil  in  the  world.  Deny  the  ap- 


The  Development  of  Divine  Love  1  75 

pearance  of  evil,  and  affirm  the  all-power  and  every- 
where presence  of  Love  and  Goodness.  Take  no 
account  of  the  evil  that  appears  in  your  life  and 
affairs.  Refuse  to  see  it  as  evil.  Declare  that  what 
seems  evil  has  somewhere  a  good  side,  which  shall, 
through  your  persistent  affirmation  of  its  presence, 
be  made  visible.  By  this  creative  power  of  your 
own  thought,  you  change  that  which  seemed  evil  into 
good,  and  Divine  Love  will  pour  its  healing  balm 
over  all. 

Sickness  is  not  good,  because  it  is  not  of  God; 
but  if,  through  past  ignorance  in  thought  or  act,  one 
finds  himself  in  its  grasp,  he  can  hasten  his  deliver- 
ance by  affirming  the  experience  to  be  a  good  lesson 
which  he  will  take  to  heart  and  profit  by.  If  he 
wails  and  bemoans  his  sad  fate,  he  throws  the 
shadow  of  gloom  into  the  healing  waters  of  love, 
thereby  corrupting  them  and  weakening  their  restor- 
ative action  for  him. 

Always  remember  that  love  is  the  great  mag- 
net of  God.  It  is,  of  itself,  neither  good  nor  evil. 
These  are  qualities  given  to  it  by  the  thinking  fac- 
ulty in  man.  Whatever  you  see  for  your  love,  that 
it  will  draw  to  you,  because  as  a  magnet  it  attracts 
whatever  you  set  your  desire  upon.  To  focus  your 
love  about  self  and  selfish  aims,  will  cause  it  to  draw 
around  you  the  limited  things  of  personality  and 
the  hollow  shams  of  the  sense  life.  To  focus  love 
upon  money  and  the  possessions  of  the  material 
world,  will  make  you  the  slave  of  mammon,  and 
your  life  will  be  a  failure  and  a  disappointment. 
To  focus  your  love  upon  anything  less  than  the  All- 
Good  will  eventually  prove  short  of  your  highest 


176  Talks  on  Truth 

aspiration,  and  you  will  find  yourself  outside  the 
kingdom  of  heaven. 

"Love  suffereth  long,  and  is  kind." 

Love  does  not  resent  injuries.  It  does  not  take 
affront  and  insult  into  account.  Pure  love  does 
not  recognize  personality;  hence  when  one  is  in  the 
consciousness  of  love,  he  cannot  be  hurt  nor  suffer 
at  what  may  be  said  to  him  or  about  him.  "A  soft 
answer  turneth  away  wrath"  is  ever  on  the  lips  of 
love,  and  whoever  makes  this  his  thought- focus  will 
be  able  to  reduce  to  peace  and  harmony  the  tides  of 
impatience  and  anger  that  may  be  surging  about  him. 

One  with  strong  love  and  the  right  focal  idea, 
may  control  turbulent  multitudes  by  his  silent  thought 
alone. 

When  we  speak  of  the  power  of  love,  it  should 
be  understood  that  we  mean  power  exercised 
through  love.  Power  is  a  faculty  of  mind.  It 
associates  itself  with  some  other  faculty,  and  in  con- 
junction with  it,  is  made  manifest.  In  the  relation  of 
man's  faculties  in  Divine  Mind,  power  and  love 
are  associated  in  action,  but  in  man's  present  con- 
cept of  relations  he  has  associated  intellect  and 
power.  From  this  wrong  relation  arise  the  tyranny 
and  oppression  so  evident  in  the  world. 

Power  should  never  be  exercised  except  through 
love.  Whoever  associates  his  power  and  intellect 
and  attempts  in  a  blind  way  to  force  his  desire  to  ful- 
fillment, will  always  bring  about  discord  and  un- 
righteous oppression. 

Power  cannot  be  used  successfully  through  in- 
tellect, because  intellect  lacks  wisdom.  Wisdom 
associates  itself  with  love,  and  can  be  found  in  its 


The  Development  of  Divine  Love  I  77 

purity  only  at  the  heart  center,  hence  we  speak  of 
the  "still,  small  voice  within."  Elijah  found  that 
the  voice  of  God  was  not  in  the  wind,  not  in  the 
earthquake  or  the  fire — these  being  of  the  intellect — 
but  in  the  "still,  small  voice." 

Intellect  is  not  wise.  Wisdom  is  not  its  office. 
Intellect  is  the  executive  officer  of  wisdom,  and  can 
do  right  only  when  faithfully  carrying  out  the  in- 
structions of  its  principle. 

We  see  how  dangerous  to  the  welfare  of  man 
it  is  for  intellect  to  assume  knowledge  and  to  call 
upon  power  to  help  it  in  carrying  out  its  unsubstantial 
ideas.  Power  is  the  faculty  in  mind  that  propels  out- 
wardly, and  must  necessarily  have  balance  in  some 
other  faculty,  in  order  to  hold  its  equilibrium.  There 
is  but  one  other  faculty  that  has  opposite  action,  and 
that  is  love,  whose  office  is  attraction.  When  power 
and  love  are  associated,  the  centrifugal  and  the  cen- 
tripetal forces  of  Being  are  equalized;  man  unifies 
all  the  work  given  him  to  do  by  the  Lord  God,  and 
his  dominion  over  the  forces  of  Being  is  exercised  in 
peace  and  harmony.  Peace  and  harmony  are  the 
focalizing  ideas  that  chord  with  the  divine  nature  of 
love,  and  when  they  are  associated  in  the  mind 
there  is  no  limit  to  man's  power.  It  is  said,  by  those 
who  know  the  power  of  spiritual  forces,  that  one 
man  developed  large  enough  in  love,  might  dissolve 
this  planet  with  his  word.  But  one  so  developed 
would  never  do  anything  to  interfere  in  any  T»ay 
with  the  life  and  rights  of  another.  Love  does  not 
take  offense,  and  surely  its  very  last  thought  should 
be  to  offend. 

Among  a  certain  class  of  Hindu  mystics  are 


1  78  Talks  on  Truth 

those  called  Bhakti,  or  Disciples  of  Love.  They 
know  the  power  of  love  to  protect  and  care  for 
them,  and  they  cultivate  it  until  all  nature  is  in  love 
with  and  befriends  them.  Thousands  of  the  com- 
mon people  of  India  are  killed  annually  by  serpents 
and  wild  animals,  yet  these  mystics  have  so  brought 
forth  the  power  of  love  in  themselves  that  serpents 
and  savage  animals  do  not  injure  them.  They  live 
in  the  wildest  jungles;  during  periods  of  silent  de- 
votion, lasting  sometimes  weeks  and  even  months, 
the  open  forest  is  their  home.  It  is  recorded  that 
birds  have  built  their  nests  in  the  hair  of  such 
sleeping  devotees  during  their  periods  of  silence. 
They  respect  the  rights  of  the  tiniest  insects,  and 
under  no  circumstances  kill  anything  or  interfere  with 
it,  in  any  way.  This  is  putting  love  to  practical  test, 
and  it  always  proves  its  divine  origin  and  power. 

You  may  trust  love  to  get  you  out  of  your 
difficulties.  There  is  nothing  too  hard  for  it,  if  you 
put  your  confidence  in  it  and  act  without  dissimula- 
tion. But  do  not  talk  love,  and  in  your  heart  feel 
resentment.  This  will  bring  discord  to  your  mem- 
bers and  rottenness  to  your  bones.  Love  is  candor 
and  frankness.  Deception  is  no  part  of  love,  and  he 
who  tries  to  use  it  in  that  sort  of  company,  will  prove 
himself  a  liar,  and  love  will  desert  him  in  the  end. 

There  is  no  envy  in  love.  Love  is  satisfaction  in 
itself.  Not  that  satisfaction  with  personal  self,  its 
possessions  and  attractions  which  is  vanity,  but  an 
inner  satisfaction  that  sees  good  everywhere  and  in 
everybody.  It  insists  that  all  is  good,  and  by  refus- 
ing to  see  anything  but  good,  that  quality  finally  ap- 
pears uppermost  in  itself  and  in  all  things.  When 


The  Development  of  Divine  Love  1  79 

only  good  is  seen  and  felt,  how  can  there  be  any- 
thing but  satisfaction? 

The  one  who  has  made  union  with  Divine  Love 
through  his  inner  consciousness,  and  who  lets  it  pour 
its  healing  currents  into  his  soul  and  body,  is  fortu- 
nate beyond  all  description.  Instead  of  envying  an- 
other, the  desire  is  to  show  others  the  great  joy 
which  may.be  theirs  when  they  have  opened  out  the 
floodgates  of  their  love  nature. 

Truly,  "Love  envieth  not." 

Yet  with  all  these  glorious  possessions,  beyond 
the  power  of  man  to  describe,  "Love  vaunteth  not 
itself,  is  not  puffed  up."  Love  does  not  brag  about 
its  demonstrations.  It  simply  lives  the  life,  and  lets 
its  works  speak  for  it. 

Love  does  not  seek  its  own.  It  does  not  make 
external  effort  to  get  anything,  not  even  that  which 
intellect  claims  belongs  to  it.  It  is  here  that  love 
proves  itself  to  be  the  invisible  magnet  that  draws 
to  man  whatever  he  needs.  But  instead  of  leaving 
this  department  of  the  work  to  love,  intellect  sees 
what  it  wants,  and,  in  its  blundering  way,  goes 
about  getting  it.  Thus  the  real  begetting  power  in 
man  has  been  ignored  until  its  true  office  has  been 
forgotten  and  its  power  suppressed. 

When  love,  the  universal  magnet,  is  brought 
into  action  in  the  consciousness  of  our  race,  it  will 
change  all  our  methods  of  support  and  supply.  It 
will  harmonize  all  the  forces  of  nature,  and  the  dis- 
cords that  now  infest  earth  and  air  will  disappear. 
It  will  control  the  elements  until  they  obey  man 
and  bring  forth  that  which  will  supply  all  his  needs, 
without  that  labor  which  is  called  the  sweat  of 


180  Talk*  on  Truth 

his  face.  This  earth  shall  yet  be  made  paradise 
by  the  power  of  love. 

That  condition  will  begin  to  set  in  for  each  one 
of  us  just  as  soon  as  we  develop  the  love  nature  in 
ourselves. 

When  love  has  begun  its  silent  pulsations  at 
our  solar  center,  no  one  can  keep  us  in  want  or  pov- 
erty. From  the  invisible  currents  of  the  inner  ether, 
love  will  draw  to  us  all  that  belongs  to  us;  and  all 
belongs  to  us  that  is  required  to  make  us  happy  and 
contented. 

This  mighty  magnet  is  a  quality  of  God  that  is 
expressed  through  man,  and  it  cannot  be  suppressed 
by  any  outside  force.  No  environment  or  external 
condition  can  keep  back  love,  when  once  you  have 
firmly  decided  in  mind  to  give  it  expression.  The 
present  unloving  condition  of  the  world  is  no  bar  to 
your  exercise  of  love;  in  fact,  it  is  an  incentive. 
You  will  know,  as  you  begin  to  make  love  manifest, 
how  great  a  sinner  you  have  been,  how  far  you  have 
fallen  short  of  making  yourself  the  man  or  woman 
of  God.  This  will  show  you  by  comparison  how 
greatly  you  have  missed  the  mark  of  the  high  call- 
ing which  is  yours  in  Christ. 

We  have  all  been  taught  the  beauties  of  love 
and  its  great  power  in  the  world,  but  no  one  else  has 
explained  that  it  has  a  center  of  action  in  the  body, 
that  was  designed  by  the  Creator  to  do  a  specific 
work.  The  man  or  woman  who  has  not  developed 
the  love  center  is  abnormal,  is  living  in  only  partial 
exercise  of  consciousness.  The  love  center  has  its 
nerves  and  muscles  in  the  body,  which,  through 
neglect,  have  become  atrophied  in  nearly  the  whole 


The  Development  of  Divine  Love  1 8 1 

race.  But  they  are  just  as  necessary  to  the  perfect 
man  as  are  legs  and  arms;  and  more  so,  because 
with  the  love  center  active,  one  might  live  happily 
and  successfully  without  legs  or  arms.  He  might 
even  grow  new  legs  and  arms  in  an  adherence  to  the 
completeness  of  life  in  which  love  proves  to  be  the 
fulfillment  of  the  law  of  perfection. 

The  body  is  the  instrument  of  the  mind,  and 
no  one  has  ever  seen  his  real  body  as  it  is  in  the  sight 
of  God,  except  through  the  mind.  The  body  of 
flesh,  bones,  and  blood  that  the  eye  of  sense  beholds, 
is  not  the  true  body  any  more  than  the  heart  of  flesh 
is  the  true  organ  of  love. 

The  true  body  is  an  ethereal  body,  an  inde- 
structible body;  the  body  of  flesh  is  the  grosser 
vibration  which  the  sense  consciousness  beholds. 
The  Spirit-body  is  not  absent  or  dead,  but  simply 
inactive.  When,  through  purification  of  his  ideas 
and  acceleration  of  his  mental  energies,  man  comes 
into  sight  of  the  real  forces  of  Being,  his  whole  body 
is  quickened  into  new  life,  and  the  body  of  flesh 
responds  to  its  vibrations.  This  is  done  through  the 
mind — by  thinking  right  thoughts  and  doing  right 
things  also,  because  man  is,  in  ultimate,  a  unit,  and 
the  thinking  and  doing  cannot  be  separated. 

To  develop  the  love  center,  commence  by  affirm- 
ing, "From  this  time  forth  and  forevermore  I  shall 
know  no  man  after  the  flesh.  I  shall  not  see  men 
and  women  as  body  and  mortal  thought.  I  shall 
always  behold  them  with  the  eye  of  love,  which 
sees  only  perfection."  Ask  daily  that  love  be  made 
alive  in  you;  that  she  take  up  her  abode  at  your 


1 82  Talks  on  Truth 

magnetic  center  and  make  it  alive  with  her  strong, 
steady  pulsations  of  spiritual  energy. 

Let  your  attention  rest  for  a  few  moments  every 
day  at  the  heart  center  in  your  body,  the  solar  plexus, 
while  you  declare  silently: 

"You  are  the  abode  of  Love.  You  are  filled 
and  thrilled  with  the  mighty  magnetic  forces  which 
she  uses  in  doing  her  work.  You  are  powerful  and 
active  to  do  only  good,  and  you  see  only  goodness 
and  purity  everywhere." 

Many  people  say  that  they  cannot  see  love  in 
others  who  are  not  so  manifesting — that  they  do  not 
feel  loving  themselves,  and  cannot  therefore  exercise 
love.  But  this  development  of  your  own  love  cen- 
ter will  make  you  see  it,  just  as  the  eye  sees  light. 
It  is  difficult  to  feel  love  with  a  dormant  love  organ, 
but  exceedingly  easy  when  that  organ  commences 
to  exercise  its  inherent  potentialities. 

Love  is  in  the  world  in  a  diluted  form  as  affec- 
tion between  husband  and  wife,  parents  and  chil- 
dren, friend  and  friend,  but  it  can  be  made  manifest 
in  its  original  strength  and  purity  by  each  man  and 
woman  opening  the  fountainhead  and  letting  its 
mighty  currents  stream  forth. 

Sex  lust  has  diverted  the  vital  forces  in  the 
body  away  from  the  love  center,  the  solar  plexus, 
which  is  almost  dormant  in  many  men.  When  a 
pure  minded  woman  sends  forth  her  desire  for  love, 
such  men  interpret  it  sexually  and  are  excited  to 
lust.  Love  is  disappointed,  and  loathing  of  the  ig- 
norant animal  eventually  follows.  Love  is  not  sex 
lust. 

The  love  of  God  for  his  children  is  beyond  de- 


The  Development  of  Divine  Love  1 83 

scription — a  love  so  tender  and  so  deep  that  it  cannot 
be  mentioned  in  the  same  breath  with  the  ordinary 
love  as  known  by  the  world. 

The  great  love  of  Being  is  deeper  and  wider 
than  the  thoughts  and  words  of  man  have  compassed 
since  the  beginning  of  language.  It  can  be  known 
only  on  its  own  plane,  and  man  must  awaken  within 
himself  the  capacity  to  feel  a  mighty  love  before  he 
can  comprehend  how  great  is  the  love  of  God. 

But  only  the  meek  and  lowly  in  heart  may  know 
the  depths  of  the  Father's  love.  It  is  not  revealed 
to  the  self-sufficient,  because  they  do  not  open  the 
way  through  their  own  childlike,  innocent  hearts. 

The  Father  yearns  to  have  his  love  felt  by  every 
one  of  us.  He  has  given  us  the  capacity  to  feel  it, 
and  he  waits  until  we  develop  it  and  open  our  souls 
to  the  flood  of  good  that  he  will  pour  out  to  us 
through  his  all-sufficient  love. 

Father,  Almighty!  We  bow  before  thy  good- 
ness, and  invoke  in  prayer  and  supplication  thy  silent 
presence  as  Love.  May  its  steady  currents  of  power 
draw  us  into  thy  mighty  arms,  where  we  shall  rest 
secure  from  all  the  buffets  of  the  world.  We  come 
as  little  children  into  the  sacred  precincts  of  thy 
Love,  knowing  full  well  that  no  hand  of  force  ever 
finds  a  welcome  here. 

Open  to  us  the  inner  peace  and  harmony  which 
are  born  of  Love.  Let  all  fear  depart  from  our 
minds  as  the  shadows  at  morning  light.  Let  us  bask 
forever  in  the  sunshine  of  perpetual  Love !  thy  Love 
— thy  never-failing  Love! 


THE  MINISTRY  OF  THE  WORD 

The  question  of  the  Word  of  God,  its  character 
and  office,  its  relation  to  man,  is  one  widely  dis- 
cussed by  the  theological  world. 

The  statement  made  by  John  at  the  opening  of 
his  gospel  is  of  deep  metaphysical  import;  it  has 
always  been  a  stumblingblock  to  believers  in  a  per- 
sonal God.  Only  one  who  understands  mind,  its 
laws  and  inherencies,  can  grasp  the  relation  between 
God  and  his  Word  as  here  presented  by  John. 

It  is  interpreted  to  mean  Jesus  Christ  of  Naz- 
areth ;  and  so  it  does,  in  a  free  application  of  a  uni- 
versal consciousness  manifesting  through  an  indi- 
vidual. But  this  is  a  limited  view  of  the  question, 
and  does  not  touch  the  vital  points  of  the  Word  and 
its  relation  to  man  and  all  other  aspects  of  creation. 

John  says :  "All  things  were  made  through  him ; 
and  without  him  was  not  anything  made  that  hath 
been  made."  But  this  does  not  cover  the  point;  it 
omits  to  state  that  there  is  a  vital  connection  still 
existing  between  the  things  made  and  the  maker. 

This  is  where  theology  has  wandered  away 
from  the  very  present  sentient  and  vitally  active 
Spirit  permeating  all  things,  man  not  excepted. 

It  is  here  also  that  the  very  essence  of  the  pure 
metaphysical  doctrine,  propounded  and  demon- 
strated by  Jesus  Christ,  has  its  greatest  virtue. 

It  is  not  a  doctrine  of  "has  been,"  not  a  state- 
ment of  creation  on  post  mortem  grounds,  but  its 

184 


The  Ministry  of  the  Word  \  85 

vitality  is  in  it.  It  lives  with  a  life  and  vigor  that  is 
in  no  wise  lost  in  the  recital  of  what  occurred  in  the 
misty  past,  that  cannot  be  defeated  by  speculations 
of  what  may  occur  in  the  problematical  future. 

Jesus  Christ  was  imbued  with  a  spirit  purely  his 
own.  He  did  not  borrow  his  mission,  nor  his  words, 
nor  his  precepts  from  Egypt,  Persia,  or  India.  He 
was  a  genius  that  burned  with  his  own  wick  and  oil. 
He  was  not  a  child  of  tradition,  nor  did  he  allow 
the  muggy  thought  of  Jewry  to  befog  his  midday 
mind.  He  was  not  a  Son  of  God  by  proxy,  but  ap- 
peared in  person  and  presented  his  heavenly  cre- 
dentials. There  was  not  in  his  whole  history  and 
ministry  a  single  loophole  for  the  belief  in  absence 
or  apartness  of  God.  Herein  lies  the  appropriate- 
ness of  our  claim  to  him  as  a  forerunner  of  the  doc- 
trine we  advocate.  He  is  our  elder  brother,  and 
to  him  we  are  indebted  for  the  clearest  presentation 
of  spiritual  science  that  has  ever  been  given  to  the 
world. 

It  is  of  vital  importance  how  a  doctrine  is  pre- 
sented. Some  people  think  it  is  only  necessary  to 
talk  religion  in  flowing  words  and  heavenly  tones. 
This  is  one  way,  but  Jesus  did  not  adopt  it.  His 
presentation  is  peculiar  in  that  it  carries  with  it,  and 
illustrates  by  its  works,  a  basis  more  enduring  than 
mere  metaphysical  presumption. 

The  imagination  will  carry  out  any  idea  or  set 
of  ideas  that  the  I  AM  reflects  into  it,  hence  theories 
are  not  to  be  trusted.  There  must  be  evidence  in 
works.  To  produce  works,  there  must  be  a  working 
power.  This  is  exactly  what  the  Word  is — the 
working  power  of  God. 


186  Talks  on  Truth 

Every  process  that  we  know  anything  about,  has 
its  regular  advancing  steps  from  inception  to  con- 
clusion, and  these  steps  are  taken  according  to  rec- 
ognized principles. 

The  student  of  languages  must  have  intelligence 
as  a  base  of  operation ;  next,  he  must  have  ideality ; 
and  next,  expression.  To  leave  out  one  of  these 
factors,  is  to  thwart  the  end  sought. 

Who  can  learn  a  language  without  the  ideal 
upon  which  to  form  his  concepts?  Then  who  can 
express  that  language  without  the  word  through 
which  to  convey  to  the  listening  ear  the  inner  ideal  ? 

Herein  is  the  Word  of  God  prototyped.  It  is 
that  which  conveys  to  the  world  the  concepts  of  the 
Most  High.  It  is  not  the  Most  High  in  his  whole- 
ness, but  it  carries  with  it  the  power  behind  the 
throne,  because  "these  three  are  one" — the  Father 
(Principle),  the  Son  (the  Ideal),  and  the  Holy 
Ghost  (the  Formative  Word). 

These  three  are  also  minimized  in  each  indi- 
vidual, and  through  every  ego  is  being  poured  all 
the  power  of  Father,  Son,  and  Holy  Ghost  just  to 
the  extent  that  the  ego  recognizes,  acknowledges, 
and  appropriates  them.  They  are  in  the  world  as 
omnipresent  Principle,  having  an  abiding  place 
everywhere,  because  they  are  as  ubiquitous  as  the 
air.  No  man  lives  a  moment  without  them,  yet  few 
men  recognize  them — "The  light  shineth  in  the  dark- 
ness; and  the  darkness  apprehended  it  not." 

"There  came  a  man,  sent  from  God,  whose 
name  was  John."  This  is  a  step  from  darkness  to 
light.  John  is  the  illumined  intellect  turned  toward 
the  creative  light.  It  is  not  that  light  itself,  but  bears 


The  Ministry  of  the  Word  187 

witness  of  that  light — recognizes  it,  and  proceeds  to 
clear  the  way ;  tears  down  the  walls  of  darkness  that 
shut  that  light  from  the  view  of  the  purblind  ego, 
blinded  not  from  choice,  but  by  its  own  conceits. 
This  is  the  darkness  into  which  the  light  shines,  and 
where  it  is  not  comprehended. 

But  John  bore  witness  of  the  Light.  Whoso- 
ever testifies  in  the  favor  of  Truth,  though  he  be 
far  removed  from  its  brightness,  is  its  friend,  and  is 
making  straight  the  way  for  its  full  blaze  into  his 
consciousness. 

Light  in  the  Scriptures  always  means  intelli- 
gence; hence  that  which  shines  into  the  conscious- 
ness, and  is  not  comprehended  by  it,  is  the  clear  re- 
vealing on  the  plane  of  Spirit  of  that  higher  truth 
which  Spirit  alone  comprehends. 

To  catch  this  light  in  his  understanding,  man 
must  rise  out  of  the  sense  state  into  the  realm  of  free 
ideas.  Here  is  where  the  Word  does  its  work ;  here 
it  is  that  "All  things  were  made  through  him;  and 
without  him  was  not  anything  made  that  hath  been 
made." 

Outside  of  pure  metaphysics  (and  by  pure  meta- 
physics is  meant  a  clear  understanding  of  the  realm 
of  ideas  and  their  legitimate  expression),  there  can 
be  no  correct  interpretation  of  this  peculiar  state- 
ment: "Without  him  was  not  anything  made  that 
hath  been  made."  This  implies  that  there  is  a  mak- 
ing which  is  not  legitimate — not  in  accordance  with 
principle  inherent  in  Being. 

Those  who  have  made  a  study  of  Mind  from  an 
independent  standpoint,  those  who  have  opened 
themselves  to  the  influx  of  original  ideas  from  Spirit, 


188  Talks  on  Truth 

have  discovered,  in  manner  inexplicable  to  mortal 
sense,  that  there  are  apparent  creations  which  are  not 
creations  at  all,  being  but  transitory  formations  that 
lose  their  cohesion  and  dissolve  when  their  mental 
sustenance  is  withdrawn. 

These  formations  are  produced  by  the  mentality 
working  independently  of  its  wisdom  sphere.  They 
are  not  permanent  because  they  lack  in  that  which 
is  essential  to  the  permanent — harmony.  There  can 
be  no  creation  without  a  creator ;  there  being  but  one 
Creator,  there  can  be  but  one  creation. 

God  is  the  origin  of  all,  and  from  him,  in  orderly 
steps  through  his  Perfect  Idea  (Son)  and  Wise 
Builder  (Holy  Ghost),  all  creation  proceeds. 

The  Son  (man)  looks  to  the  Father  for  all  in- 
struction, and  the  Father  responds  to  the  son's  de- 
mands by  sending  forth  the  Holy  Spirit  equipped 
with  wisdom  and  power  necessary  to  perform  the 
work. 

Man  stands  in  the  Godhead  as  the  imaging  fac- 
ulty. He  gives  form,  outline,  condition,  relation  to 
the  infinite  possibilities  of  the  formless;  but  the  form- 
less knows  how  it  should  be  formed  to  be  enduring, 
and  this  knowledge  is  communicated  to  man,  along 
with  the  power  to  form,  when  he  looks  for  it  and 
acknowledges  it.  His  failure  to  ask  for  this  wisdom 
does  not  nullify  his  formative  powers,  however,  be- 
cause he  is  by  nature  the  formative  faculty  of  Being. 

Hence,  when  man  ignores  the  wisdom  of  the 
Spirit  and  proceeds  to  build  his  world  independ- 
ently, he  seems  to  make  many  states  and  conditions 
which  are  not  made  at  all ;  they  are  merely  malfor- 


The  Ministry  of  the  Word  1 89 

mations,  and  must  of  necessity  fall  to  pieces  of  their 
own  disproportion. 

All  states  are  mental  states.  There  is  nothing 
else  in  all  the  universe,  visible  or  invisible.  Who- 
ever imagines  anything  else  is  throwing  on  the  screen 
of  his  universe  the  crude  pictures  on  an  uninspired 
mentality.  Such  pictures  last  for  a  season,  but  their 
own  discords  are  their  final  destruction. 

So  in  the  very  nature  of  things,  a  way  must  exist 
whereby  man  may  form  his  consciousness  in  har- 
mony and  consequent  permanency.  That  way  is 
in  and  through  his  acknowledgment  of  the  Holy 
Spirit,  the  Word  of  God. 

Mind  is  that  quality  of  Being  that  knows.  It  is 
pure  ^nerving,  and  he  who  cultivates  it  becomes  so 
filled  with  understanding  that  he  intuitively  per- 
ceives the  right  of  every  question  or  proposition  sub- 
mitted to  him.  He  does  not  have  to  study  books 
nor  have  experience  in  the  realm  of  things. 

Jesus  of  Nazareth  was  an  enigma  to  the  worldly 
wise  of  Judaea.  They  wondered  where  he  got  his 
understanding,  never  having  studied  letters.  But  he 
did  not  claim  to  have  wisdom  of  himself;  he  recog- 
nized its  true  source  in  the  Father — "The  word 
which  ye  hear  is  not  mine,  but  the  Father's  who 
sent  me." 

Every  one  coming  into  conscious  recognition  of 
the  Mind  of  Spirit,  knows  that  he  knows,  without 
having  learned  through  any  of  the  avenues  recog- 
nized as  necessary  by  the  intellectual  man.  It  is 
not  a  system  of  reasoning  from  premise  to  conclu- 
sion, but  a  direct  summing  up  of  the  whole  case  in 
omnipresent  Knowing. 


190  Talks  on  Truth 

The  why  and  wherefore  of  this  may  be  ex- 
plained to  those  who  have,  in  even  a  small  measure, 
disentangled  the  ego  from  the  sense  mind.  It  re- 
quires a  degree  of  familiarity  with  principles.  If 
you  can  comprehend  a  state  where  pure  Mind  exists 
free  from  the  limitations  of  time,  space,  and  con- 
dition, you  can  grasp,  in  a  degree,  the  working  field 
of  pure  knowing. 

There  is  within  every  man  such  a  place — the 
"secret  place  of  the  Most  High."  When  man 
finds  this  place  and  accepts  its  privileges  as  his,  he 
is  let  into  the  realm  of  pure  metaphysics,  where 
Mind  alone  with  all  its  transcendent  powers  holds 
free,  untrammeled  sway.  This  is  the  point  in  every 
man  where  God  joins  hands  with  him,  and  where  the 
Word  of  God  finds  entrance  into  his  mentality.  It 
is  here  that  man  understands  what  it  is  to  be  inspired 
by  the  Spirit  to  say  and  do  those  things  extraordi- 
nary in  the  sight  of  the  world. 

Simon  Magus  tried  to  buy  the  secret  of  this  su- 
perior magic,  but  found  that  he  could  not.  It  is  not 
for  sale  for  money  consideration.  It  can  only  be 
had  for  love  and  obedience. 

He  who  would  have  fruit  from  the  tree  of  life, 
must  reach  up  and  get  it.  He  must  aspire  to  it  first, 
and  then  in  prayer  and  true  word,  act  as  if  he  had 
already  received  it ;  he  must  go  right  ahead  preaching 
the  gospel,  healing  the  sick  and  doing  the  other 
commandments  of  the  Master,  exactly  as  if  he  were 
already  filled  with  the  Holy  Ghost. 

When  the  disciples  of  Jesus  wanted  to  forbid 
those  who  were  doing  works  in  his  name,  he  said, 
"Forbid  them  not."  So  every  one  who  goes  ahead 


The  Ministry  of  ihe  Word  1 9 1 

and  does  the  very  best  he  knows  in  the  name  of  the 
Most  High  Good,  will  by  virtue  of  his  works  draw 
down  upon  himself  the  baptism  of  the  Holy  Ghost 
—the  Word  of  God. 

In  the  Scriptures,  the  Word  of  God  is  usually 
personified,  indicating  self-consciousness.  He  who 
acknowledges  the  self-conscious  character  of  the 
Word  is  led  as  by  One  who  knows  all  the  affairs  of 
his  life — aye,  his  most  secret  thoughts. 

Thus  this  Word  of  God  is  the  revelation  to  man 
of  the  powers  and  possibilities  of  his  own  being.  It 
is  the  light  that  brings  to  his  notice  the  inner  mech- 
anism of  his  soul  and  body.  Where  he  externally 
sees  only  flesh,  blood,  and  bones,  the  searchlight  of 
this  Word  discloses  the  presence  of  secret  springs 
and  living  streams  of  energy  and  life.  Man 
awakens  from  his  dream  of  sense  and  begins  to  visit 
the  different  rooms  in  the  temple  he  has  lived  in,  but 
knows  so  little  about.  This  he  is  permitted  to  do 
through  the  "light  which  lighteth  every  man,  com- 
ing into  the  world." 

When  man's  consciousness  is  lifted  up  by  this 
wisdom  Word,  he  finds  himself  master  of  the  powers 
and  privileges  of  Infinity.  He  then  says  with  Jesus, 
"All  authority  hath  been  given  unto  me  in  heaven 
and  on  earth."  These  are  the  privileges  of  the  sons 
of  God,  and  every  man  is  a  son  of  God. 

But  to  be  or  not  to  be,  rests  upon  the  immutable 
law  of  the  Word  of  God,  for  only  by  the  light 
which  it  sheds,  can  man  see  and  appropriate  the 
privileges  which  are  his  by  original  birth.  It  is  only 
those  who  receive  him  who  become  in  fact  the  sons 
of  God. 


YE    MUST    BE    BORN    AGAIN 

And  no  one  has  ascended  into  the  heaven,  save  he  who 
out  of  the  heaven  descended — the  Son  of  Man. — John 
3:13.  (Rotherham  translation.) 

Jesus  said,  "Except  one  be  born  of  water  and 
the  Spirit,'  and,  "That  which  is  born  of  the  flesh  is 
flesh;  and  that  which  is  born  of  the  Spirit  is  spirit." 
Who  and  what  is  this  that  is  subject  to  so  many 
births? 

This  important  invisibility  that  takes  on  these 
protean  forms  is  man,  according  to  Jesus.  But  what 
is  man  ? 

Plato  told  his  students  that  a  good  description 
of  man  was  a  "biped  without  feathers."  Diogenes 
learned  of  this  definition,  procured  a  chicken,  and 
after  plucking  its  feathers,  turned  it  loose  before 
Plato's  class  with  the  words,  "Behold  Plato's  man!" 
This  is  a  peculiarly  fitting  illustration  of  the  ignoble 
end  of  all  definitions  that  circumscribe  man  to  form. 

Jesus  evidently  referred  to  an  invisible  some- 
thing that  was  first  born  of  flesh,  then  born  of  the 
Spirit.  The  inference  is  that  this  something  is  capa- 
ble of  an  infinite  number  of  experiences  in  birth  and 
rebirth. 

What  is  this  invisible  something  that  says,  "Be- 
fore Abraham  was  born,  I  am"?  Who  are  you, 
born  into  this  round  of  experiences  that  you  are  now 
passing  through,  and  where  did  you  come  from? 
What  is  it  that  says  "I  am"? 

When  your  voice  says  "I  am,"  does  it  do  so  on 
192 


Ye  Must  Be  Bom  Again  193 

its  own  responsibility,  or  is  it  moved  by  an  invisible 
One?  Who  is  this  invisible  One,  and  what  is  his 
relation  to  the  voice  through  which  he  speaks? 
These  are  the  most  important  questions  that  were 
ever  put  to  any  school  on  earth.  When  we  begin 
to  consider  them,  in  even  the  most  primary  way,  we 
are  entering  the  realm  of  the  gods. 

Over  the  entrance  to  the  Greek  temple  was  writ- 
ten, "Know  thyself,"  and  it  is  always  written  over 
every  door  that  opens  from  ignorance  to  wisdom. 
"Know  thyself;"  know  who  and  what  you  are, 
where  you  came  from,  what  you  are  doing  here,  and 
where  you  are  going.  If  you  want  to  know  all  this, 
meditate  upon  the  I  AM. 

Your  mind  reverts  to  Moses  and  Jehovah — you 
think  of  a  mighty  I  AM  away  back  in  history.  You 
do  not  connect  that  far-away  I  AM  which  inspired 
Moses,  with  your  own  little  everyday  "I  am"  that 
struggles  in  the  "brawl  for  bread."  Yet  there  is  but 
one  I  AM.  It  cannot  be  cut  up  into  parts;  it  is  Prin- 
ciple. That  which  says  "I  am"  in  all  men,  women, 
and  children  is  identical.  It  is  like  the  mathematical 
one.  All  the  combinations  of  figures  that  were  ever 
conceived  are  but  the  repetitions  of  this  digit.  It  is 
the  son  of  the  principle,  mathematics.  It  is  inspired 
by  its  principle  and  all  the  possibilities  of  that  prin- 
ciple are  open  to  it. 

Your  I  AM  is  the  Son  of  the  God  Idea,  and  all 
the  possibilities  of  the  Principle  through  that  Idea, 
are  open  to  you.  To  "know  thyself"  is  to  know  that 
you  are  I  AM,  and  not  flesh  and  blood. 

It  is  this  I  AM  that  is  born  of  flesh  and  bora  of 
Spirit.  It  is  not  flesh,  neither  is  it  Spirit,  if  by  Spirit 


194  Talks  on  Truth 

is  meant  a  state  of  consciousness.  It  is  just  I  AM, 
the  center  from  which  all  states  of  consciousness  are 
generated.  Speaking  definitely,  it  is  never  born 
into  any  state  of  consciousness,  because  it  always 
transcends  all  conditions.  It  is  the  supreme  Dic- 
tator that  determines  the  state  of  consciousness  in 
and  through  which  it  will  function.  "I  will  be  what 
I  will  to  be,"  is  its  dictum. 

It  may  choose  to  be  born  into  the  flesh,  and  it 
may  choose  to  be  born  into  the  Spirit.  By  its  de- 
cision it  sets  into  motion  the  machinery  of  the  uni- 
verse to  carry  out  its  will.  "Legions  of  angels" 
hasten  to  obey  its  call  when  it  knows  who  and  what 
it  is. 

It  is  evident  that  we  have,  at  some  time,  chosen  to 
be  born  into  the  flesh  or  we  would  not  be  in  it.  If 
we  have  had  enough  of  the  flesh,  it  is  our  privilege 
to  drop  it  out  of  our  minds  and  be  born  of  the  Spirit. 
"That  which  is  born  of  the  flesh  is  flesh;  and  that 
which  is  born  of  the  Spirit  is  spirit."  The  "flesh"  is 
a  state  of  consciousness;  the  "Spirit"  is  a  state  of 
consciousness. 

The  ego,  or  I  AM,  functions  in  these  states  of 
consciousness,  according  to  its  desire.  The  moving 
factor  of  the  I  AM  is  desire.  It  desires  a  certain 
experience — on  the  wings  of  that  desire  it  carries 
itself  where  it  can  be  fulfilled.  In  the  process  of 
fulfillment,  the  ego  may  forget  that  it  has  ever  so 
desired,  but  the  law  never  forgets. 

If  you  are  functioning  in  the  flesh,  you  may  be 
sure  that  you  somewhere,  sometime,  desired  an  ex- 
perience to  which  this  answers. 

There  are  no  accidents  in  the  laws  of  Being. 


Ye  Must  Be  Born  Again  195 

"Whatsoever  a  man  soweth,  that  shall  he  also  reap," 
is  another  way  of  saying  that  for  every  cause  there 
is  an  adequate  effect.  This  law  of  sequence  is  the 
balance  wheel  of  the  universe.  Like  all  other  laws 
that  inhere  in  Being,  it  is  good. 

The  ego  can  have  any  experience  that  it  wills 
to  have.  If  it  wills  to  revel  in  sensation,  a  state 
where  sensation  holds  high  carnival  is  provided.  If 
its  appetite  for  sensation  is  satiated,  other  states  are 
open  to  it;  it  may  be  "bora  of  the  Spirit." 

But  before  journeying  hence,  the  tangled  ends 
of  this  experience  must  be  straightened  out.  "Let 
all  things  be  done  decently  and  in  order,"  is  written 
over  the  door  of  all  of  God's  playhouses. 

If  you  choose  to  function  in  the  realm  of  sensa- 
tion— if,  through  any  cause  you  have  brought  about 
disorder,  you  cannot  leave  until  harmony  is  restored. 

If  you  lack  wisdom,  there  is  a  way  provided  to 
get  it — "The  Spirit  of  truth, ...  he  shall  guide  you 
into  all  the  truth." 

Your  real  self  is  that  which  says  I  AM.  It  can- 
not be  described,  because  description  is  limitation, 
and  it  is  unlimited  in  its  capacity  to  be.  It  is  the 
All-Possibility,  yet  it  is  ignorant  of  the  states  of 
consciousness  into  which  it  is  ushered  until  it  has 
experienced  them.  In  the  flesh  consciousness  it  is 
will.  In  the  spiritual  consciousness  it  is  love.  Both 
are  blind  unless  will  is  married  to  intelligence  and 
wisdom  to  love. 

^  There  are  people  who  have  had  enough  fleshly 
experience,  and  who  now  desire  to  be  born  into  the 
Spirit.  That  desire  will  open  the  door  into  the 
Spirit.  You  have  only  to  desire  to  be,  and  you  will 


196  Talks  on  Truth 

surely  find  the  way  to  be  that  which  you  desire. 
There  is  no  exception  to  this  inherent  principle  of 
Being.  You  have  sometime  polarized  your  desire 
in  the  direction  of  the  flesh,  or  you  would  not  be 
having  the  experience  of  the  flesh. 

Do  not  condemn  the  flesh  nor  bewail  your  lot. 
The  flesh  is  an  obedient  servant,  and  now  expresses 
your  idea  of  what  form  should  be.  In  its  virgin 
purity,  it  is  the  immaculate  substance  of  Being.  If 
it  appears  corrupt  or  subject  to  corruption,  human- 
ity has  made  it  so  through  ignorance,  and  humanity 
must  again  purify  it  by  restoring  it  to  the  heaven  of 
its  consciousness,  when  it  will  cease  to  be  flesh.  That 
which  the  world  conceives  to  be  flesh  has  no  existence 
in  Being  whatever.  It  is  a  malformation  of  the  sub- 
stance idea  of  Being,  and  must  be  transformed  by 
right  conception  of  the  Divine  Perfection,  before 
the  mortal  can  put  on  the  immortal. 

Thus  all  things  are  right  here,  ready  for  our 
using,  to  function  through,  in  the  fulfillment  of  our 
desire  to  experience  sensation.  If  we  have  failed  to 
get  satisfaction,  the  fault  lies  not  in  the  substance 
but  in  our  use  of  the  substance.  Now  that  we  wish 
to  transfer  our  experiences  to  the  realm  of  the  Spirit, 
to  light  instead  of  sensation,  we  have  but  to  comply 
with  the  conditions  of  that  realm  to  do  so. 
1^  There  is  a  Primal  Substance,  and  all  states  of 
consciousness  are  in  it.  We  do  not  have  to  go  any- 
where to  find  it ;  it  is  here.  We  are  basing  our  pres- 
ent experiences  upon  it  and  calling  it  flesh.  If  we 
desire  to  see  it  as  Spirit,  we  must  so  call  it,  and  must 
seek  to  know  the  mental  attitude  on  our  part  neces- 
sary to  make  it  show  forth  the  conditions  of  Spirit. 


Ye  Must  Be  Born  Again  197 

"The  kingdom  of  God  is  within  you."  It  is 
not  afar,  nor  is  it  hard  to  find,  if  your  desire  has 
headed  you  in  its  direction. 

The  question  is,  Do  you  really  want  to  be  born 
into  the  Spirit? 

The  majority  of  people  would  answer  this  query 
in  the  affirmative  without  a  moment's  thought.  But 
this  is  mere  impulse,  and  not  a  careful  consideration 
of  the  most  important  matter  that  was  ever  presented 
to  the  I  AM. 

To  be  born  into  the  Spirit  is  to  come  into  an  en- 
tirely new  and  different  state  of  consciousness.  This 
has  a  mighty  meaning  back  of  it.  What  makes  up 
your  present  consciousness?  Is  it  not  largely  the 
things  of  sense? 

Analyze  your  surroundings  and  see  if  they  are 
not  all  based  upon  the  perception  of  the  five  senses. 
You  swing  in  your  little  orbit  of  family  ties.  You 
believe  that  you  were  born  into  the  world  through  a 
chain  of  fleshly  ancestors  to  whom  you  are  bound 
by  a  filial  love  which  to  your  present  understanding  is 
inviolable.  Yet  he  who  has  passed  from  the  flesh 
consciousness  into  the  Spirit,  looked  back  and  said, 
"Call  no  man  your  father  on  the  earth:  for  one  is 
your  Father,  even  he  who  is  in  heaven.'* 
£  So  the  I  AM  that  desires  to  function  on  the 
spiritual  plane  must  drop  all  belief  of  fleshly  parent- 
age. It  must  count  as  rubbish  all  pride  of  ancestry 
and  "blue  blood."  It  must  forever  cease  to  talk 
about  the  social  prestige  of  "our  family;"  it  must 
not  bolster  up  the  mortal  man  by  considering  an- 
cestral reputation  of  any  weight.  This  form  of  hu- 
man pride  must  all  be  denied  away  as  a  dream  of  the 


198  Talks  on  Truth 

night,  because  it  is  one  of  the  strong  cords  that  bind 
the  I  AM  to  the  flesh. 

Every  tie  of  earthly  relationship  must  be  recog- 
nized as  the  passing  condition  of  a  brief  fleshly  ex- 
perience. Your  children  are  not  yours  as  you  have 
looked  upon  them.  They  are  egos  like  yourself, 
who,  through  some  similarity  of  desire,  have  been  at- 
tracted to  your  mental  stratum.  They  may  be  older 
than  you  in  experience  and  wisdom.  Do  not  let 
your  affections  throw  both  them  and  you  into  a  little 
vortex  of  family  selfishness.  You  will  love  them 
with  a  love  that  will  help  to  lift  them  into  the  eternal 
heaven  when  you  know  that  they  are  not  your  chil- 
dren, your  brothers  and  sisters,  your  fathers  and 
mothers,  but  that  all  men  and  women  compose  one 
great  common  family  with  God  as  the  Father- 
Mother.  "For  whosoever  shall  do  the  will  of  my 
Father  who  is  in  Heaven,  he  is  my  brother,  and  sister, 
and  mother." 

The  I  AM  was  born  into  the  flesh  through  de- 
sire, and  it  is  desire  that  keeps  it  in  the  consciousness 
of  the  flesh.  The  five  senses  are  simply  avenues  of 
one  great  central  desire — Sensation.  The  I  AM 
desired  experience  in  sensation,  and  the  five  senses 
are  the  five  formulated  avenues  through  which  it 
enjoys  that  experience. 

Sensation  is  not  an  evil,  except  when  you  choose 
to  let  it  crawl  on  its  belly  through  the  fleshly  ave- 
nues. It  is  the  serpent  that  beguiles  man  when  he 
turns  it  outward  into  mere  seeming — hearing,  seeing, 
feeling,  tasting,  and  smelling.  In  the  wilderness  of 
sense,  Moses  lifted  it  up.  Moses  was  the  law  which 
the  I  AM  sent  forth. 


Ye  Must  Be  Bom  Again  1 99 

You  must  make  a  law  for  this  serpent  that  is 
holding  you  in  the  sensations  of  the  flesh.  You  de- 
sire to  be  born  into  the  Spirit,  but  you  cannot  rise 
out  of  the  flesh.  Something  binds  you  down.  Like 
a  captive  balloon,  you  are  tugging  at  the  guy  ropes 
that  fasten  you  to  earth. 

Mind  is  the  only  causative  power.  By  the  power 
of  the  word,  it  makes  and  unmakes  all  laws.  The  I 
AM  floats  in  mind  and  formulates  the  words  that  set 
mind  into  motion. 

If  you  are  bound  to  the  flesh,  the  cords  that  hold 
you  are  concreted  words.  If  you  want  to  be  un- 
bound, it  must  be  accomplished  by  words.  The 
cords  are  states  of  consciousness  that  you  must  dis- 
solve. This  dissolving  process  is  accomplished  by 
words  that  express  denial — negations. 

The  denial  looses  the  bond.  In  cutting  yourself 
free  from  the  chains  of  Egypt  (ignorance) ,  your  I 
AM  must  go  forth  and  make  laws  of  denial,  the 
dominant  idea  of  which  is  negation — "Thou  shall 
not." 

"Thou  shalt  not  commit  adultery,"  is  a  denial 
that  regulates  the  animal  consciousness  and  helps  it 
along  the  path  to  higher  things;  but  Jesus  said,  "Ye 
have  heard  that  it  was  said,  Thou  shalt  not  commit 
adultery:  but  I  say  unto  you,  that  every  one  that 
looketh  on  a  woman  to  lust  after  her  hath  committed 
adultery  with  her  already  in  his  heart." 

He  was  laying  down  the  law  of  the  spiritual 
consciousness — instructing  those  who  wanted  to  be 
bora  out  of  the  flesh  into  the  Spirit.  In  that  realm, 
the  flesh  man  with  his  carnal  sensations  has  no  part. 
"And  Jesus  said  unto  them,  The  sons  of  this  world 


200  Talks  on  Truth 

marry,  and  are  given  in  marriage;  but  they  that  are 
accounted  worthy  to  attain  to  that  world,  and  the 
resurrection  from  the  dead,  neither  marry,  nor  are 
given  in  marriage." 

Do  not  be  deluded  by  those  who  cry,  "All  is 
good,  therefore  all  the  desires  of  the  flesh  are  good 
and  should  be  indulged."  Jesus  plainly  said,  "That 
which  is  born  of  the  flesh  is  flesh ;  and  that  which  is 
born  of  the  Spirit  is  spirit,"  definitely  indicating  two 
states  of  consciousness. 

The  I  AM  is  always  the  same.  Your  identity 
is  preserved  wherever  you  are,  in  the  flesh  or  in  the 
Spirit ;  but  the  two  states  are  as  distinct  as  America 
and  Europe.  When  you  are  in  Europe,  you  come 
into  relation  with  people  and  surroundings  quite  dif- 
ferent from  those  in  America.  So  he  who  has  let  go 
the  bonds  of  the  flesh  and  come  into  the  Spirit,  finds 
himself  in  a  different  country. 

In  the  flesh,  his  sensation  was  turned  outward 
through  feeling,  and  man  was  bound  to  the  eternally 
rolling  wheels  of  birth  and  death  by  physical  gen- 
eration. When  he  is  bora  into  the  Spirit,  he  cuts  off 
the  indulgence  of  the  external,  and  is  delighted  to 
learn  that  sensation  finds  an  interior  faculty,  through 
which  it  expresses  itself  in  perpetual  ecstasy.  Had 
he  continued  to  indulge  the  desires  of  the  flesh  in  the 
external,  he  would  never  have  discovered  the  en- 
during faculty  of  the  internal. 

Jesus  said,  "In  my  Father's  house  are  many 
mansions;"  that  is,  there  are  many  states  of  con- 
sciousness. Each  state  is  good  for  him  who  enjoys 
it.  Therefore  we  should  not  condemn  the  flesh  con- 
sciousness, nor  those  who  prefer  to  remain  in  it. 


Ye  Must  Be  Born  Again  201 

Neither  should  we  who  are  satiated  with  the  flesh, 
continue  to  bow  down  and  worship  it,  nor  believe 
the  subtle  argument  that  it  is  Spirit  because  it  came 
forth  from  mind. 

In  claiming  your  unity  with  Spirit,  you  must  be 
willing  to  conform  to  the  conditions  of  Spirit.  If 
you  are  not  sincere  in  your  conformity,  you  will  be 
torn  in  the  conflict.  You  cannot  worship  two 
masters. 

When  you  have  renounced  the  fleshly  conscious- 
ness and  have  resolved  to  live  in  the  Spirit,  you  have 
made  a  covenant  with  the  Most  High  to  leave  the 
domain  of  the  flesh  forever.  You  have  entered  into 
an  agreement  with  your  invisible  self,  which  is  far 
more  binding  than  any  manmade  contract  could 
possibly  be. 

If  you  agreed  to  go  to  California  and  remain 
there  for  a  consideration  to  be  paid  by  your  em- 
ployer, you  would  in  honor  be  bound  to  carry  out 
your  contract.  You  would  arrange  to  leave  the 
things  of  this  region  behind  you;  you  would  faith- 
fully seek  to  prepare  yourself  for  the  new  require- 
ments in  that  country.  This  is  exactly  the  attitude 
you  should  take  when  you  have  agreed  with  the 
Father  to  do  his  will  and  be  bora  into  the  Spirit. 

You  are  going  into  a  country  entirely  new  to 
you,  and  your  experiences  will  be  strange  and  won- 
derful. The  customs  that  prevail  in  the  flesh  con- 
sciousness will  not  fit  the  spiritual  consciousness. 

Paul  says,  "The  fruit  of  the  Spirit  is  love,  joy, 
peace,  longsuffering,  kindness,  goodness,  faithful- 
ness, meekness,  self-control ;  against  such  there  is  no 


202  Talk*  on  Truth 

law.  ...  If  we  live  by  the  Spirit,  by  the  Spirit  let 
us  also  walk." 

Are  you  bringing  forth  this  kind  of  fruit?  If 
not,  you  may  know  that  you  are  not  being  born  of 
the  Spirit,  for  "by  their  fruits  ye  shall  know  them." 

A  large  number  of  students  of  Truth  are  at  this 
time  complaining  because  they  are  having  trials. 
They  say,  "We  have  denied  and  affirmed  for  years. 
We  have  studied  science  and  understand  it.  We  are 
faithful  to  the  hours  of  meditation  and  are  staunch 
defenders  of  the  Truth,  yet  we  do  not  demonstrate. 
Why  is  it?" 

"If  we  live  by  the  Spirit,  by  the  Spirit  let  us  also 
walk."  Here  is  the  key  that  will  open  the  door  of 
causes  for  you.  Do  you  also  walk  by  the  Spirit? 

How  about  the  habits  of  the  flesh  conscious- 
ness? Do  you  still  give  them  rein? 

Remember  that  you  cannot  perform  a  single  act 
without  putting  your  consciousness  into  it.  All 
things  are  sustained  by  your  conscious  thought  pro- 
jection. Every  time  you  indulge  in  any  of  the  sen- 
sations of  the  flesh,  you  are  binding  the  I  AM  to  the 
fleshly  consciousness. 

Spiritual  thinking  is  the  pioneer  that  opens  the 
way  into  the  new  birth,  but  it  must  be  followed  by 
spiritual  acting  on  the  part  of  every  faculty.  "Pre- 
sent your  bodies  a  living  sacrifice,  holy,  acceptable 
to  God,  which  is  your  spiritual  service." 

In  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount,  Jesus  laid  down 
the  law  for  those  who  desire  to  follow  him  into  the 
regeneration — to  be  born  again.  If  you  seek  this 
spiritual  birth,  examine  your  daily  life,  and  see  if 
you  are  conforming  to  its  requirements. 


Ye  Must  Be  Born  Again  203 

If  you  are  angry  with  your  brother,  you  will  be 
in  danger  of  the  judgment. 

"Agree  with  thine  adversary  quickly."  Does 
this  allow  the  intervention  of  the  courts  to  settle  your 
disputes?  Did  you  ever  know  a  man  who  went  to 
law,  to  agree  with  his  adversary  quickly? 

Judicial  courts  are  not  known  in  the  Spirit, 
and  you  can  never  be  bora  again  nor  expect 
the  help  of  the  Spirit  in  your  affairs  as  long  as  you 
believe  in  securing  your  rights  through  such  con- 
tentious channels.  If  you  are  sincere  in  your  desire 
to  be  born  into  the  Spirit,  shun  all  the  entanglements 
of  the  world's  legal  machinery.  It  is  a  snare  and  a 
delusion.  Your  triumphs  through  its  methods  will 
in  the  end  turn  to  dust  and  ashes.  "If  any  man 
would  go  to  law  with  thee,  and  take  away  thy  coat, 
let  him  have  thy  cloak  also."  Trust  the  defense  of 
your  rights  to  the  law  of  Spirit,  and  you  will  be  victor 
in  every  instance.  You  may  appear  to  lose  both 
your  coat  and  your  cloak,  but  do  not  worry.  Your 
judge  is  the  Almighty  Equilibrium  of  the  universe, 
and  all  men  and  all  things  are  obedient  to  it  in  its 
"day  of  judgment." 

Do  you  love  your  enemies?  Do  you  bless  them 
that  curse  you,  do  good  to  them  that  hate  you,  and 
pray  for  them  which  despitefully  use  you  and  perse- 
cute you?  This  is  required  of  one  who  seeks  the 
new  birth. 

Are  you  laying  up  treasures  for  yourself  upon 
earth,  "where  moth  and  rust  consume,  and  where 
thieves  break  through  and  steal"?  If  so,  remember 
the  primal  law  of  thought  generation — the  gluing  of 
the  ego  to  those  things  which  it  consciously  seeks; 


204  Talk*  on  Truth 

"for  where  thy  treasure  is,  there  will  thy  heart  be 
also."  You  cannot  float  out  into  the  ethereal  sub- 
stance of  the  Spirit,  with  bags  of  gold  in  each  hand. 

Do  you  allow  your  mind  to  drift  with  the  cur- 
rent criticism  of  the  world,  magnifying  the  error  and 
minimizing  the  good?  This  mental  habit  of  the 
ignorant  flesh  is  carnal  judgment — darkness  and  ig- 
norance seeing  themselves  reflected  in  all  the  uni- 
verse. Beware  of  this  subtle  adversary  who  goes 
forth  ostensibly  to  reform  the  world. 

According  to  Rotherham,  Jesus  said  to  such: 
"Why,  moreover,  beholdest  thou  the  mote  that  is  in 
the  eye  of  thy  brother,  while  the  beam  in  thine  eye 
thou  dost  not  consider?  Or  wilt  thou  say  to  thy 
brother,  Allow  I  may  cast  out  the  mote  out  of  thine 
eye;  and,  behold!  the  beam  is  in  thine  eye?  Hypo- 
crite! Cast  out  first,  out.  of  thine  eye,  the  beam; 
and  then  shall  thou  clearly  see  to  cast  out  the  mote 
out  of  the  eye  of  thy  brother." 

O  Son  of  God  and  Son  of  man!  realize  what 
and  who  you  are.  Know  consciously  what  Jesus 
so  succinctly  stated:  "No  one  hath  ascended  into 
heaven,  but  he  that  descended  out  of  heaven,  even 
the  Son  of  man,"  the  one  having  his  being  in  heaven. 

Your  being  is  in  heaven — the  spiritual  conscious- 
ness. You  descended  from  that  high  estate ;  by  right 
you  belong  there  now.  You  are  there  now  if  you 
will  but  realize  it  and  will  but  comply  with  the  laws 
of  heaven.  God  is  here  now  in  our  very  midst.  The 
Spirit  is  here,  taking  account  of  our  every  thought. 
The  Father  loves  us  with  his  infinite  love.  We  are 
his  in  truth,  and  must  be  his  in  fact. 


OBEDIENCE 

Before  the  descent  of  the  Holy  Spirit  upon  us, 
we  live  in  the  intellect,  and  our  little  world  is 
rounded  by  the  thinking  faculty.  What  our  an- 
cestors thought  is  the  pattern  after  which  we  cut  our 
thinking.  To  any  one  who  claims  a  higher  fount  of 
wisdom  we  say,  "Art  thou  greater  than  our  father 
Jacob,  who  gave  us  the  well,  and  drank  thereof 
himself,  and  his  sons,  and  his  cattle?" 

Thinking  is  a  process  in  mind.  All  processes 
come  to  an  end.  Every  thought  has  its  premise,  its 
stage  of  action  as  a  reasonable  proposition,  and  its 
conclusion.  So  the  I  AM  that  lets  the  sphere  of  its  ex- 
istence be  encompassed  by  the  limited  thinking  fac- 
ulty, follows  the  process  of  the  syllogism;  it  believes 
birth,  life,  and  death  to  be  the  major,  minor,  and  con- 
clusion of  existence.  Instead  of  recognizing  the 
power  to  think  as  simply  a  faculty  of  mind,  it  as- 
sumes it  to  be  the  whole  of  mind  and  all  of  itself. 
This  identification  of  the  free  I  AM  with  its  creations 
brings  about  a  world  of  illusions.  Instead  of  ac- 
complishment through  an  equilibrium  of  faith  and 
works,  it  sees  no  way  of  reaching  the  goal  except 
through  violent  and  continued  action.  To  such,  ex- 
istence is  not  the  joyous  dominion  over  many  obedi- 
ent powers,  but  the  rebellious  slave  of  one. 

To  be  ushered  into  life,  blindly  toil  a  few  years 

through  its  fitful  maze,  and  then  go  out  in  darkness 

is  surely  not  the  method  of  wise  design.     Life  must 

mean  more  than  this,  and  it  does  mean  more.     Man 

205 


206  Talks  on  Truth 

is  the  builder,  and  to  him  is  given  all  the  materials 
out  of  which  to  construct  the  temple  in  which  he 
dwells.  He  builds  in  wisdom  or  ignorance,  accord- 
ing to  his  obedience — his  receptivity  to  the  sphere 
of  intelligence  within  him. 

Simon,  the  first  disciple  of  Jesus,  represents  a 
receptive  attitude  of  mind.  Simon  means  hearing — 
listening  for  the  inner  voice  and  obedience  to  it, 
when  it  says,  "Put  out  into  the  deep,  and  let  down 
your  nets  for  a  draught."  When  the  thinking  fac- 
ulty is  obedient  and  does  what  it  is  told,  it  is  always 
rewarded  with  a  great  "multitude  of  fishes,"  or  new 
ideas.  It  is  then  counted  worthy  to  be  a  disciple  of 
the  Master  and  its  name  is  changed  to  Peter.  Faith, 
the  substance  of  thought,  then  becomes  the  rock  upon 
which  the  body  temple  is  built.  If  you  are  living  in 
your  thinking  faculty  intellectually,  if  you  believe  in 
birth  and  death,  you  must  come  out  of  that  belief. 
You  are  not  exercising  your  rightful  dominion,  but 
are  subject  to  error  thought. 

You  are  Spirit,  the  Son  of  God,  and  your  place 
is  at  the  right  hand  of  the  Father.  To  realize  this 
is  to  call  down  upon  yourself  the  baptism  of  the 
Holy  Spirit,  after  which  baptism  you  no  longer  labor 
as  a  carpenter,  or  fisher,  but  begin  to  gather  together 
your  disciples — powers  of  mind.  This  gathering  to- 
gether of  your  powers  is  an  orderly  process,  and  you 
will  find  that  it  proceeds  right  along  the  lines  laid 
down  in  the  choosing  of  his  disciples  by  Jesus,  as 
recorded  in  Matt.  4:18  and  Mark  1:16.  Your 
first  power  is  the  hearing  faculty,  Simon,  and  with 
him  is  strength,  "his  brother  Andrew."  You  dis- 
cover that  hearing  gives  direction  to  your  thinking 


Obedience  207 

faculty  and  that  obedience  increases  your  power  to 
control  your  thoughts  and  to  make  your  world  con- 
form to  your  ideas.  Then  you  disentangle  the  I  AM 
from  the  thinking  faculty;  you  take  control  of  the 
thinking  and  direct  its  power  according  to  your  wis- 
dom. But  wisdom  is  of  the  Spirit.  "There  is  a 
spirit  in  man,  And  the  breath  of  the  Almighty  giveth 
them  understanding." 

After  you  have  separated  your  I  AM  from  the 
thinking  faculty,  you  are  no  better  off  than  before 
unless  you  recognize  that  all  wisdom  is  from  the 
Spirit.  You  can  get  flashes  of  understanding  at  any 
time,  but  the  clear  light  of  the  Supreme  will  shine 
steadily  upon  you  only  when  you  are  obedient  and 
receptive  to  its  monitions.  The  record  states  that 
Jesus  prayed  often ;  that  he  sought  in  every  way  to  do 
the  Father's  will,  even  to  suffering  the  utmost  igno- 
miny in  order  to  carry  out  the  message  which  he  had 
for  humanity.  He  always  listened  for  the  "inner 
voice,"  and  was  obedient  to  it  in  his  meek  and  lowly 
work  among  the  humblest  class  of  men.  To  do 
the  will  of  the  Father  was  his  highest  aim,  because 
his  success  depended  entirely  upon  knowing  that  will. 
"I  do  nothing  of  myself,"  and  "All  authority  hath 
been  given  unto  me  in  heaven  and  on  earth,"  seem 
contradictory  statements,  but  when  carefully  an- 
alyzed they  corroborate  the  premise  that  all  wisdom 
and  power  come  from  the  Spirit — and  the  Spirit 
is  "given"  to  man.  The  highest  development  of 
spiritual  discernment  sees  the  I  AM  possessed  of 
nothing  as  its  own,  but  the  user  of  all  things  that  the 
Father  has. 

The  relation  between  God  and  man  is  very  sim- 


208  Talks  on  Truth 

ilar  to  that  existing  between  a  cooperative  colony 
and  its  members.  All  that  the  colony  owns,  is  for 
the  use  of  each  member  to  the  full  extent  of  his 
ability  to  use  wisely,  but  he  must  not  attempt  to 
hoard  the  belongings  of  the  colony  nor  claim  them  as 
his  exclusive  property.  To  know  how  to  establish 
this  relation  between  Father  and  Son  is  the  object  of 
every  man,  for  only  through  its  establishment  can 
come  happiness.  After  the  I  AM  has  come  into  an 
understanding  that  it  is  given  charge  of  various 
powers,  its  first  need  is  to  know  how  properly  to  de- 
velop those  powers.  When  this  knowledge  comes, 
the  I  AM  must  faithfully  use  all  its  resources  in  for- 
warding the  grand  scheme  of  creation. 

Here  comes  up  an  extremely  intricate  and  in- 
teresting point.  Can  it  rightly  be  said  that  man  pos- 
sesses any  powers?  We  say  that  we  have  judg- 
ment, love,  etc.,  but  is  it  not  true  that  these  belong  to 
God,  and  are  merely  ours  to  use  in  the  attainment  of 
an  object  in  the  plan  of  creation,  which  is  not  yet 
revealed  by  the  Father?  This  must  be  the  conclu- 
sion of  a  logical  consideration  of  the  matter.  Man 
is  given  "dominion"  over  all  things,  but  possession  is 
not  conveyed.  Thus  you  do  not  possess  your  body 
even — it  belongs  to  God.  If  it  is  sick  or  discordant 
in  any  way,  the  condition  must  be  in  your  idea  of  the 
body  and  not  in  the  real  body  itself.  All  of  God's 
creations  are  perfect ;  your  body  as  it  appears  to  him 
must  also  be  perfect,  and  if  you  will  stand  aside  and 
let  his  Spirit  shine  through  it,  you  will  see  that  it  is 
perfect  in  every  part. 

Some  of  the  most  miraculous  cures  ever  made 
have  been  where  the  healer  simply  saw  perfection 


Obedience  209 

in  the  patient.  He  saw  with  the  eye  of  Spirit  that 
which  really  exists,  and  the  shadow  conformed  to 
his  seeing  just  to  the  extent  of  his  realization  of  that 
spiritual  reality.  The  Father  lets  you  use  his  sub- 
stance and  intelligence  to  build  shadows  about  the 
real,  but  that  they  are  shadows  you  learn  by  experi- 
ence, when  you  might  know  by  a  shorter  way.  That 
shorter  way  is  the  way  of  obedience  to  the  Spirit. 
Obedience  comes  from  a  meek  and  lowly  heart — 
a  heart  that  is  willing  to  serve  all  and  sacrifice  its 
mortal  pride  on  the  altar  of  spiritual  Truth.  Jesus 
washed  his  disciples'  feet,  the  most  humble  office. 
He  told  them,  "He  that  is  greatest  among  you  shall 
be  your  servant.  And  whosoever  shall  exalt  himself 
shall  be  humbled ;  and  whosoever  shall  humble  him- 
self shall  be  exalted."  This  erasing  of  the  personal 
man  is  the  short  cut  into  the  kingdom  of  heaven.  It 
is  not  a  denial  of  oneself  as  a  "worm  of  the  dust," 
"a  sinner  against  God,"  and  other  misconceptions  of 
the  relation  of  the  I  AM  to  the  Father.  It  is  a  letting 
go  of  pride,  ignorance,  selfishness,  ambition,  and  the 
thousand  and  one  dense  ideas  that  make  the  soul 
opaque  to  the  eye  of  the  Spirit. 

A  man's  burdens  are  always  the  things  he  has 
laid  claim  to  as  his  personal  property,  and  which  are 
thereby  deprived  of  the  sustaining  ability  of  the  All- 
Powerful.  "Come  unto  me,  all  ye  that  labor  and 
are  heavy  laden,  and  I  will  give  you  rest."  Lay 
your  burdens  upon  the  Spirit.  Say  unto  them,  "I 
let  you  go  gladly."  You  have  no  right  whatever  to 
take  upon  yourself  any  burden.  To  do  so  is  to 
contradict  squarely  the  universal  law  of  Good. 
There  is  no  such  thing  as  a  burden  in  God's  scheme 


210  Talks  on  Truth 

of  creation,  and  if  you  are  bearing  one,  it  is  because 
you  do  not  understand  who  and  what  you  are  and 
your  relation  in  the  great  Whole. 

When  you  carefully  sift  your  burdens  you  will 
find  that  they  arise  from  some  idea  of  possession. 
You  think,  for  instance,  that  you  have  those  de- 
pendent upon  you  who  must  be  provided  with  the 
necessities  of  life.  Your  idea  of  their  claim  upon 
you  arises  from  your  belief  that  they  have  no  other 
protector.  When  you  recognize  an  all-caring 
Father,  who  heeds  even  the  sparrow's  fall,  you  re- 
linquish that  idea  of  your  responsibility,  and  you 
are  relieved.  Then  through  the  mental  freedom 
which  your  mind  recognizes,  there  flows  to  you  and 
those  in  whom  you  are  interested  greater  resources 
from  unlooked-for  directions.  We  do  not  abandon 
our  friends  and  withdraw  all  interest  in  them,  but 
we  recognize  their  equality  with  ourselves  in  the 
supreme  Mind,  and  by  that  recognition  they  are 
freed  from  a  mental  dependency  with  which  we 
have  unconsciously  bound  them.  They  begin  to 
assert  their  inherent  capacities;  they  step  forth  with 
the  work  which  the  Spirit  within  them  has  chosen. 

People  who  pose  before  the  world  as  benefac- 
tors and  dispensers  of  charity,  should  rightly  be 
counted  enemies  of  mankind.  He  who  dispenses 
charity  tickles  his  own  idea  of  benevolence,  but  he 
is  not  a  friend  of  the  race.  Thousands  are  held  in 
bondage  to  the  belief  that  they  must  be  helped, 
when  the  blessing  would  be  to  make  them  see  that 
their  salvation  lies  in  helping  themselves.  The  most 
prolific  burden  producer  is  that  idea  that  provision 
must  be  made  for  the  needs  of  the  future.  The 


Obedience  211 

childless  scrimp  and  strive  to  provide  a  competency 
for  old  age;  those  with  children  pursue  the  same 
methods,  providing  for  the  future  of  their  children. 
This  fear  of  a  future  day  of  want  has  become  a 
race  belief  so  absorbing  that  the  old,  the  young,  and 
the  middle-aged  are  its  victims  under  the  guise  of 
life  insurance. 

If  you  are  obedient  to  the  Spirit  you  will  not 
suffer  these  burdens  to  be  loaded  upon  you.  You 
will  live  in  the  present;  do  your  highest  duty  every 
day;  forget  the  past,  and  let  the  future  take  care 
of  itself.  To  trust  the  Spirit,  you  must  know  of  its 
guidance  by  experience.  To  those  who  have  not 
learned  the  guidance  of  the  Spirit,  that  experience 
.must  be  acquired.  God  does  not  require  you  to 
follow  his  leading  on  blind  trust  always.  You  may 
look  over  all  creation  first  and  see  the  evidence  of 
the  invisible  intelligence  pervading  everything,  even 
your  own  body.  Then  from  analogy  you  can  ar- 
rive at  a  solution  of  the  question  whether  or  not  that 
same  Spirit  pervades  your  consciousness.  If  you 
decide  that  it  does,  and  you  have  made  up  your 
mind  to  cultivate  its  acquaintance,  you  may  rest  in 
the  assurance  that  the  proof  will  be  forthcoming. 
The  Spirit  is  modest;  its  voice  is  silent  in  a  turmoil 
of  argument  about  its  existence.  It  is  not  found  on 
the  housetops  proclaiming  its  presence.  It  is  Spirit. 
Spirit  is  the  omnipotent,  silent  principle  pervading 
Being.  You  are  Spirit,  and  must  find  yourself  be- 
fore you  can  communicate  with  the  universal  Spirit. 

The  thinking  faculty  is  the  gate  through  which 
the  I  AM  comes  forth  from  the  invisible  to  the  visible, 
and  it  is  through  this  gate  you  must  go  to  get  into 


212  Talks  on  Truth 

the  presence  of  the  Spirit.  Hence,  we  take  words 
and  go  unto  our  God.  We  came  out  from  his  pres- 
ence through  that  gate,  and  we  must  return  the  same 
way.  On  the  inner  side  is  the  garden  of  Eden,  but 
the  cherubim  stand  there,  and  the  flaming  sword 
that  turns  "every  way,  to  keep  the  way  of  the  tree  of 
life."  That  flaming  sword  is  the  inner  motive  that 
rules  our  thoughts  and  acts.  It  turns  every  way 
to  guard  the  tree  of  life,  because  that  tree  is  the 
precious  substance  of  the  Father. 

Disobedience  to  the  Spirit  is  refusal  to  do  right 
at  all  hazards.  We  all  know  the  right,  but  we  do 
not  always  do  it,  because  it  seems  to  foil  immediate 
attainment  of  the  object  we  seek.  We  want  quick 
returns,  forgetting  that  "the  mills  of  the  gods  grind, 
slow,  but  they  grind  exceeding  small."  We  want 
instantaneous  healing  of  our  diseases,  but  are  loath  to 
sacrifice  the  mental  habits  that  cause  them.  The 
mind  of  the  flesh  knows  that  its  existence  depends 
upon  keeping  the  I  AM  in  its  bonds,  and  it  begs  that 
the  discord  which  its  ignorance  has  produced  in  the 
body  may  be  quickly  erased  without  disturbing  its 
dominion.  Hence,  the  cry  goes  up  from  all  over 
the  land,  "Heal  me !  heal  me !  as  Jesus  of  Nazareth 
did  those  who  came  to  him,  but  don't  ask  me  to 
change  my  ideas." 

Moses  stands  for  the  progressive  law  of  the 
mind,  working  out  its  salvation  through  obedience 
to  the  Spirit.  In  the  Egyptian  darkness  of  its  mortal 
state,  the  mind  does  not  see  its  way  out,  nor  indeed 
can  it  see,  except  through  the  eye  of  spiritual  percep- 
tion. Some  people  mistake  spiritual  perception  for 
the  reality,  and  refuse  to  take  the  second  step  of 


Obedience  213 

science,  which  is  organic  realization  of  the  truths  per- 
ceived in  mind.  This  second  step  is  one  of  intricate 
building,  stone  by  stone,  of  a  living  temple  in  which 
the  Spirit  resides  forever.  No  one  can  undertake 
this  structure  of  a  spiritual  body,  until  he  has  cove- 
nanted to  follow  the  directions  of  the  Spirit  as  re- 
vealed to  him  from  day  to  day.  If  he  depends  upon 
teachers,  healers,  books,  or  the  experience  of  others, 
he  is  like  the  contractor  who  starts  to  build  after  the 
design  furnished  by  his  architect,  and  instead  of  con- 
sulting that  design  and  its  author  at  each  step,  looks 
here  and  there  and  everywhere  for  advice  as  to  what 
to  do. 

The  image  and  likeness  of  our  spiritual  body  is 
as  thoroughly  denned  in  us  as  is  the  tree  in  the 
acorn.  Does  the  acorn  consult  anything  outside  of 
itself  as  to  how  it  should  bring  forth  a  tree?  Cer- 
tainly not.  It  simply  rests  in  the  Spirit  and  unfolds 
from  moment  to  moment,  as  moved  by  the  impulse 
within.  Exactly  the  same  law  is  operative  in  bring- 
ing forth  the  God-Man.  The  external,  striving, 
wandering  will  must  stop  its  restless  seeking  without, 
and  repose  at  the  center.  It  must  be  obedient  to  that 
center,  and  learn  the  language  of  the  Spirit.  Moses 
was  forty  years  a  tender  of  sheep  before  he  was 
competent  to  lead  his  people  out  of  servitude.  He 
learned  the  language  of  the  Father  in  his  hours  of 
solitude,  and  he  knew  without  doubting  when  he 
was  called  to  go  forth.  So  we  must,  every  one, 
find  the  Father  consciously  in  our  own  inner  temples. 
We  must  go  there  day  after  day  and  ask  for  guid- 
ance. Mere  denials  and  affirmations  will  not  do  it. 
God  is  Spirit.  Spirit  is  Mind,  and  Mind  fcnon>s. 


214  Talks  on  Truth 

It  is  not  an  abstraction  that  dwells  in  a  vacuum  to  be 
invoked  by  some  magic  formula,  but  is  must  be  culti- 
vated and  communed  with  as  a  child  with  its  parent. 

Thus  the  reality  of  living  is  to  live  as  Jesus  of 
Nazareth  lived — one  with  the  Father.  Our  ideas 
should  be  what  we  have  realized  in  and  of  ourselves, 
not  what  we  have  learned  from  books.  "He  that 
loveth  father  or  mother  more  than  me  is  not  worthy 
of  me ;  and  he  that  loveth  son  or  daughter  more  than 
me  is  not  worthy  of  me."  We  must  know  him  as 
nearer,  dearer,  and  closer  in  consciousness  than  fa- 
ther, mother,  wife,  husband,  or  friend.  He  must  be 
to  us  the  indwelling  love  and  intelligence  that  leaps 
forth  at  every  word  we  speak,  every  thought  we 
think.  He  is  at  our  right  hand  and  at  our  left.  He 
is  within  us  and  without  us.  He  dwells  in  a  halo 
about  our  heads.  His  thought  vibrates  upon  the 
tympanum  of  our  minds,  and  we  speak  the  divine 
words  of  health  and  hope  to  all  worlds. 

God  is  our  Father-Mother,  the  one  inspiration 
of  all  we  do,  all  that  we  are.  Why  for  a  moment 
ignore  this  one  All-Power?  Why  look  to  the  in- 
sipid without  when  the  inspired  within  forever 
sparkles  with  the  vintage  of  eternal  youth,  health, 
wisdom,  life? 

God  is.  Man  is.  We  are  now  in  the  presence 
of  that  eternal  Is-ness — Osiris  and  Isis  are  now  our 
Father-Mother  as  fully  as  they  were  of  old  Egypt. 
The  mighty  works  of  those  men  of  antiquity  are 
possible  to  us,  when  we  acquaint  ourselves,  as  they 
did,  with  the  power  within.  Let  us  not  look  abroad 
for  power  or  wisdom,  but  seek  at  home.  There  in 
the  silent  recesses  of  our  own  souls  we  will  find  the 


Obedience  215 

pearl  of  great  price.  The  well  of  living  water  must 
spring  up  within  us.  We  are  his  beloved,  and 
nothing  short  of  his  opulence  will  satisfy  us.  Let  us 
no  longer  stay  in  that  far  country  and  tend  the 
swine,  but  let  us  come  home  to  the  Father's  house. 
We  will  be  thrice  welcome.  Our  lives  will  spring  up 
with  new  vigor,  and  the  blush  of  youth  will  return  to 
our  cheeks,  when  we  know  that  the  eternal  fount  of 
life  forever  bubbles  up  within  our  souls. 

It  is  your  mission  to  express  all  that  you  can 
imagine  God  to  be.  Let  this  be  your  standard  of 
achievement;  never  lower  it,  nor  allow  yourself  to 
be  belittled  by  the  cry  of  sacrilege.  You  may  attain 
to  everything  you  can  imagine.  If  you  imagine  it 
is  possible  to  God,  it  is  also  possible  to  you.  What- 
ever possibility  your  mind  conceives,  that  is  for  you 
to  attain.  This  is  the  law — let  none  belittle  himself, 
nor  dwarf  the  Supreme  by  trying  to  annul  it.  "All 
things  that  are  mine  are  thine,  and  thine  are  mine." 

God  is,  and  we  are.  Let  us  live  in  his  world — 
not  a  world  to  be  tomorrow,  next  month,  next  year, 
or  next  century,  but  here  and  now.  God's  beautiful 
universe  is  all  about  us,  only  awaiting  our  acknowl- 
edgment of  its  presence.  Let  us  know  God  and 
live — live  with  love  and  joy,  health  and  peace,  here 
evermore. 

Thou  art,  O  God,  the  life  and  light 
Of  all  this  wondrous  world  we  see; 

Its  glow  by  day,  its  smile  by  night, 
Are  but  reflections  caught  from  thee. 

Where'er  we  turn  thy  glories  shine, 

And  all  things  fair  and  bright  are  thine. 


216  Talks  on  Truth 

When  day,  with  farewell  beam,  delays 
Among  the  opening  clouds  of  even. 

And  we  can  almost  think  we  gaze 
Through  golden  vistas  into  heaven — 

Those  hues  that  make  the  sun's  decline 

So  soft,  so  radiant.  Lord!  are  thine. 

When  night  with  wings  of  starry  gloom 
O'ershadows  all  the  earth  and  skies. 

Like  some  dark,  beauteous  bird,  whose  plume 
Is  sparkling  with  unnumbered  eyes. 

That  sacred  gloom,  those  fires  divine. 

So  grand,  so  countless.  Lord!  are  thine. 


THE  CHURCH  OF  CHRIST 

He  came  unto  his  own,  and  they  that  were  his  own 
received  him  not. — John  1:11. 

The  pure  doctrine  of  Jesus  Christ  has  never  been 
popular  with  those  who  like  formality  and  rites  in 
religion. 

The  disciples  of  Jesus  Christ  were  from  the 
ranks  of  the  common  people,  unlearned  in  the  lore 
of  the  scribes  and  without  reputation,  religiously  or 
otherwise.  They,  in  their  turn,  became  filled  with 
the  Holy  Spirit,  and  did  unusual  works  in  healing 
and  teaching,  yet  their  converts  were  not  largely 
from  orthodox  circles.  It  was  the  "common  people" 
who  gladly  heard  them  and  their  Master.  The 
aristocracy  and  the  organized  church  opposed  them 
at  every  turn.  They  were  stoned,  quartered,  and 
burned,  and  their  doctrines  never  became  the  pop- 
ular religion.  Pure  Christianity  was  literally  killed 
in  less  than  three  hundred  years  after  the  cruci- 
fixion. What  is  called  Christianity  is  a  combination 
of  paganism,  Israelitism,  and  the  letter  of  Jesus'  doc- 
trine without  the  spirit. 

This  heterogenous  mass  became  acceptable  be- 
cause it  was  sanctioned  by  kings  and  enforced  as  the 
church  of  the  state.  As  it  had  a  little  from  all  the 
religions,  it  offered  balm  to  the  forced  worshipers 
from  each  sect,  and  thus  became  quickly  popular. 

It  is  not  the  doctrine  of  Jesus  Christ,  however, 
and  never  has  been,  in  any  of  its  many  forms  and 
sects.  Here  and  there  a  gleam  of  truth  has  come  to 
217 


218  Talk*  on  Truth 

spiritually  awakened  devotees,  and  they  have  broken 
away  from  the  institution  and  formed  newer  and 
higher  standards  of  truth ;  but  all  have  been  far  short 
of  the  original  doctrine  set  forth  by  Jesus  and  his 
disciples. 

Jesus  Christ  never  organized  a  church  on  earth, 
nor  did  he  authorize  any  one  else  to  do  so.  He  said 
to  Peter,  "Upon  this  rock  I  will  build  my  church." 
He  did  not  tell  Peter  that  he  was  to  be  the  head  of 
the  church,  with  a  line  of  popes  to  follow.  He  said, 
"I  will  build  my  church."  Jesus  Christ  is  still  the 
head  of  his  church,  and  its  only  organization  is  in 
Spirit.  Whoever  attempts  to  organize  it  on  earth 
with  creeds,  tenets,  or  textbooks  of  any  kind  or  de- 
scription as  authority,  is  in  direct  opposition  to  his 
word  and  example.  He  gave  but  one  guide,  one 
source  from  which  his  followers  should  receive  their 
inspiration — "The  Holy  Spirit,  whom  the  Father 
will  send  in  my  name,  he  shall  teach  you  all  things, 
and  bring  to  your  remembrance  all  that  I  said  unto 
you." 

The  puerile  claim  that  this  promise  was  for  his 
immediate  disciples  only,  is  hardly  worth  consider- 
ing, because  of  so  many  texts  in  which  he  plainly 
states  that  his  ministry  and  words  are  for  the  world. 
In  the  same  chapter  with  this  he  said,  "He  that  hath 
my  commandments,  and  keepeth  them,  he  it  is  that 
loveth  me:  and  he  that  loveth  me  shall  be  loved  of 
my  Father,  and  I  will  love  him,  and  will  manifest 
myself  unto  him." 

It  was  this  same  Spirit  of  Truth  in  Peter  that 
perceived  the  Christ,  and  of  which  he  said,  "Flesh 
and  blood  hath  not  revealed  it  unto  thee,  but  my 


The  Church  of  Christ  2 1 9 

Father  who  is  in  heaven."  This  revealment  of 
Truth  direct  from  the  Spirit,  is  the  rock  upon  which 
the  one  and  only  church  of  Jesus  Christ  is  built.  All 
other  authorities  are  spurious. 

That  the  one  and  only  true  church  of  Christ  is 
without  authority  or  head  on  earth,  is  evident  from 
the  accepted  words  of  Jesus  himself.  He  never 
authorized  the  history  of  his  life  as  recorded  in  the 
Gospels,  so  far  as  known;  yet,  accepting  them  as 
such  history,  on  their  face  they  bear  out  the  claim 
of  a  spiritual  church,  with  only  the  Holy  Ghost  as 
mediator  between  man  and  God.  It  is  evident  that 
Jesus  saw  the  tendency  among  men  to  make  idols  of 
the  Scriptures,  and  it  was  his  aim  to  do  away  with 
that  sort  of  idolatry.  Instead  of  a  command  to 
"search  the  scriptures,"  Jesus  reprimanded  the  Phar- 
isees in  John  5:39,  in  these  words:  "Ye  search  the 
scriptures,  because  ye  think  that  in  them  ye  have 
eternal  life;  and  these  are  they  which  bear  witness 
of  me." 

It  is  the  eternal  binding  of  the  thoughts  to  some 
external  authority  in  book,  creed,  or  tradition  that 
keeps  men  in  bondage  to  the  lower  world.  When 
the  mind  is  perfectly  free  to  search  out  the  higher 
truths  of  existence,  there  flows  into  the  conscious- 
ness a  vigor  and  virility  that  set  in  motion  all  the 
crystallized  thoughts,  and  fresh  life  stirs  the  whole 
man.  Instead  of  confining  the  Infinite  God  in  the 
little  being  of  parts  and  passions  conceived  by  some 
good  but  ignorant  "church  father"  of  bygone  ages, 
the  open  mind  flows  forth  in  its  own  native  freedom, 
and  its  God  is  a  whole  universe,  larger  in  every  way 
than  was  his  of  the  limited  concept.  So  it  is  with  all 


220  Talks  on  Truth 

the  questions  of  doctrine  that  form  the  stock  in  trade 
of  hereditary  religion.  What  our  forefathers  dis- 
cussed a  life  time,  fought  bitter  battles  over  and  left 
undecided,  the  free  minded  man  sees  through  in  a 
moment's  consideration.  He  sees  through  it  with 
unerring  accuracy,  because  his  point  of  view  is  far 
removed  from  the  narrow  bigotry  engrafted  by 
creeds  and  dogmas  into  the  susceptible  mind  of  the 
infant  churchman. 

The  mind  of  man  is  like  a  clear  stream  which 
flows  from  some  lofty  mountain.  It  has  nothing  at 
its  point  of  origin  to  corrupt  or  distort  it,  but  as  it 
flows  out  into  the  plain  of  experience,  it  meets  the 
obstruction  of  doubt  and  fear.  It  is  here  that  dams 
are  built,  and  its  course  turned  in  many  ways. 

Whoever  formulates  a  creed,  whoever  writes  a 
book  claiming  to  be  an  infallible  guide  for  mankind; 
whoever  organizes  a  church  in  which  it  is  attempted, 
by  rules  and  tenets,  to  save  men  from  their  evil  ways ; 
whoever  attempts  to  offer,  in  any  way,  a  substitute  for 
the  one  omnipresent  Spirit  of  God  dwelling  in  each 
of  us,  is  an  obstructor  of  the  soul's  progress. 

But  those  very  things  are  the  first  attempted  by 
the  mentality  that  is  not  in  constant  openness  to  the 
influx  from  the  Father.  Man  is  by  nature  an  organ- 
izer. It  is  his  function  in  the  Godhead  to  formulate 
the  potentialities  of  the  Principle.  It  is  through 
man's  conscious  ego  that  the  Father  makes  himself 
manifest  to  him  as  Infinite  Externality.  The  within 
and  without  are  one,  only  when  man  recognizes  that 
he  draws  all  his  life,  substance,  and  intelligence  from 
Infinite  Spirit  welling  up  within  him. 

Many  have  caught  sight  of  the  fact  that  the  true 


The  Church  of  Christ  22 1 

church  of  Christ  is  a  state  of  consciousness  in  man, 
but  few  have  gone  so  far  in  the  realization  as  to 
know  that  a  temple  is  also  constructed  in  the  very 
body  of  each  man  and  woman,  in  which  the  Christ 
holds  religious  services  at  all  times.  "Ye  are  a 
temple  of  God,"  was  not  symbolical  appellation,  but 
a  statement  of  architectural  truth.  Under  the  direc- 
tion of  the  Christ,  a  new  body  is  constructed  by  the 
thinking  faculty  in  man;  the  materials  entering  into 
this  superior  structure  are  the  spiritualized  organic 
substances,  and  the  new  creation  is  the  temple,  or 
body  of  Spirit.  It  breathes  an  atmosphere  and  is 
thrilled  with  a  life  energy  more  real  than  that  of  the 
external  form.  When  one  who  has  come  into  the 
church  of  Christ  in  this  ultimate,  feels  the  stirring 
within  him  of  this  body  of  the  Spirit,  he  knows  what 
Paul  meant  when  he  said,  "There  is  a  natural  body, 
there  is  also  a  spiritual  body." 

Most  of  the  opposition  to  the  church  of  Christ 
comes  from  those  who  have  never  felt  the  stirring 
within  them  of  this  spiritual  body,  and  they  refuse  to 
believe  the  experiences  of  those  who  have.  They 
live  in  the  intellectual-spiritual,  and  when  the  Holy 
Spirit  proceeds  to  organize  an  abiding  place  within 
them,  they  refuse  it  recognition,  and  call  it  "mortal 
mind,"  "the  devil,"  or  "an  unclean  spirit." 

It  is  this  blasphemy  against  the  Holy  Ghost  that 
Jesus  said  could  not  be  forgiven.  Everything  that 
a  man  does  or  has  done,  the  Father  freely  forgives 
except  the  cursing  of  his  Holy  Spirit  by  calling  it 
an  unclean  spirit.  He  who  understands  the  law  of 
mental  action,  can  easily  see  why  this  cannot  be  for- 
given. Mind  organizes  its  states  of  consciousness 


222  Talks  on  Truth 

according  to  methods  inherent  in  Being.  First  is 
the  idea,  which  is  the  center  in  which  the  form  is 
generated.  This  form  is  projected  from  that  center 
to  a  circumference,  and  in  its  line  of  structure  in  the 
consciousness  of  man,  it  proceeds  to  occupy  the  place 
of  preexisting  forms.  The  idea  of  perfection  held 
in  the  mind,  will  build  a  body  having  for  its  attri- 
butes all  the  harmony  possible  to  the  organism  in 
which  it  is  born.  "God  giveth  it  a  body  even  as  it 
pleased  him,  and  to  each  seed  a  body  of  its  own." 
That  "seed"  is  the  true  idea  held  on  your  mind, 
through  which  the  Holy  Spirit  nourishes  and  grows 
in  you  the  new  body. 

If  you  refuse  to  receive  the  sensible  ministrations 
of  this  Holy  Spirit,  you,  of  course,  cut  off  the  builder 
of  the  eternal  temple  in  which  God  makes  his  perma- 
nent dwelling  place  in  you. 

When  you  refuse  to  receive  this  baptism  of  the 
Holy  Ghost,  your  flesh  is  not  quickened,  and  it  must 
eventually  go  back  to  dust.  In  such  a  case,  you  are 
again  sent  to  school  to  learn  the  lesson  in  another 
earthly  experience. 

This  is  the  law.  Let  him  who  hath  ears,  hear 
the  law;  let  him  not  oppose  the  construction  of  the 
temple  which  Spirit  builds  in  obedience  to  the 
thought  held  by  the  mind,  and  his  body  shall  become 
an  enduring,  deathless  habitation  of  the  living  God. 
Let  us,  each  one  of  us,  see  to  it  that  this  opposition 
to  Christ  and  his  methods  is  not  found  within  us. 

If  our  teaching  has  been  such  as  to  disparage 
the  entertainment  of  the  new  sensations  in  the  body, 
when  in  prayer  or  in  the  silence,  let  us  cast  those 
ideas  out  of  our  minds  and  throw  ourselves  wholly 


The  Church  of  Christ  223 

into  the  care  of  the  Spirit.  The  mind  of  the  flesh 
vigorously  opposes  this  newcomer  in  its  domain,  and 
if  you  side  with  it  and  ignorantly  cast  out  the  Spirit, 
you  will  find  yourself  eventually  without  a  body. 
You  have  sinned  against  the  Holy  Ghost,  and  are 
homeless  in  consequence. 

Pronounce  every  experience  good,  and  of  God, 
and  by  that  mental  attitude  you  will  call  forth  only 
the  good.  What  seemed  error  will  disappear,  and 
only  the  good  will  remain.  This  is  the  law,  and  no 
one  can  break  it.  The  adversary  always  flees  be- 
fore the  mind  that  is  fixed  on  the  pure,  the  just,  and 
the  upright.  There  is  no  error  in  all  the  universe 
that  can  stand  for  one  moment  in  the  presence  of  the 
innocent  mind.  Innocence  is  its  own  defense,  and 
he  who  invokes  the  Father  with  pure  motive  and  up- 
right heart,  need  not  fear  any  experience.  God  has 
not  forgotten  his  world  nor  the  children  of  light.  It 
is  his  will  to  build  in  you  his  eternal  habitation,  and 
he  will  do  it  in  a  manner  so  attractive  that  you  will 
be  delighted  with  the  process,  after  the  first  few 
moves  have  been  made.  It  is  not  always  pleasant  to 
tear  down  old  brick  and  mortar,  but  when  the  new 
structure  commences  to  go  up,  there  is  rejoicing. 

So  you  will  find  in  your  experience  with  the 
work  of  the  Holy  Spirit  in  reconstructing  your  or- 
ganism that  the  present  structure  must  be  literally 
torn  down  atom  by  atom.  It  is  in  its  present  state 
temporary,  and  without  the  conscious  life  of  the  in- 
dwelling Spirit.  You,  with  the  race,  have  separated 
yourself  from  God  in  consciousness;  that  separation 
extends  to  the  body,  which  is  the  most  remote  plane 
of  your  consciousness. 


224  Talks  on  Truth 

In  returning,  the  Father,  the  innermost  of  you, 
the  Spirit  which  is  and  ever  has  been  pure,  first  rec- 
ognizes its  true  estate.  This  recognition  is  on  the 
plane  of  causes,  the  ideal,  and  may  remain  there  for 
a  long  time.  But  the  law  of  seed  time  and  harvest 
prevails  here,  as  in  the  natural  world,  and  the  idea 
is  the  "seed"  which  will  spring  forth  from  its  subjec- 
tive realm.  This,  when  watered  by  the  Holy  Spirit 
through  your  receptive  thought,  grows  a  new  organ- 
ism which  will  be  a  permanent  battery  from  which 
you  will  radiate  the  transcendent  powers  of  the 
Spirit  forever  and  forever. 

When  this  is  done,  creation  is  a  perfect,  homo- 
geneous symphony  of  life,  light,  and  love.  Discord 
is  eliminated ;  sin,  sorrow,  and  everything  that  in  any 
way  interferes  with  the  highest  ideal  of  existence  are 
dissolved,  and  man  realizes  that  his  dominion  is  to 
be  the  obedient  outlet  of  the  inexhaustible  inlet. 
Herein  is  God  glorified,  that  his  inexhaustible  re- 
sources are  not  limited  by  man,  but  allowed  full  and 
free  flow  into  a  universe  without  height  or  depth, 
without  beginning  or  ending. 

The  true  church  of  Christ  is  never  organized 
upon  the  earth,  because  the  minute  that  man  organ- 
izes his  religion,  he  ceases  to  be  guided  wholly  by  the 
free  Spirit  of  Truth,  and  to  that  extent  he  falls  away 
from  the  true  church. 

Many  of  the  Protestant  sects  were,  in  their  in- 
cipiency,  very  close  to  the  original  church.  Wesley 
was  led  by  the  Spirit,  and  his  ministry  was  charac- 
terized by  a  spiritual  glow  and  power  that  was  felt 
all  over  the  religious  world.  He  was  free;  he  had 
the  freedom  of  Jesus  Christ  back  of  him,  yet  he  and 


The  Church  of  Christ  225 

his  followers  were  despised  by  the  organized  church, 
and  it  was  a  stinging  epithet  to  be  called  a  "Meth- 
odist." 

The  church  of  Jesus  Christ  still  waits  for  a  min- 
istry that  will  represent  it  as  it  is — an  organization 
in  heaven  without  a  head  on  earth,  without  a  creed, 
without  a  line  of  written  authority.  This  church 
exists,  and  must  be  set  up  in  its  rightful  place — the 
minds  and  hearts  of  men.  It  can  never  be  confined 
to  any  external  organization,  and  whoever  attempts 
such  movement,  by  that  act  ceases  to  represent  the 
true  church  of  Christ. 

There  is  need  of  such  a  church,  and  it  is  im- 
perative that  it  be  set  up.  Whoever  advocates  such 
a  setting  up,  may  for  a  season  expect  the  opposition 
of  the  organized  institutions  on  every  hand,  but  the 
final  outcome  must  be  victorious. 

There  can  be  but  one  leader  for  man  in  his 
search  for  God — the  Spirit  within  him.  When  he 
unreservedly  gives  himself  up  to  this  Spirit  he  finds 
that  the  old  world  of  forms  and  their  limitations  are 
no  longer  of  interest.  A  new  world  is  opened  to  his 
vision.  What  was  the  goal  of  his  human  life,  be- 
comes a  mere  toy  to  his  expanded  concepts  of  God 
and  the  destiny  of  man. 

He  finds  that  the  church  of  Jesus  Christ  is  not  a 
church  at  all,  under  the  new  definition.  He  has 
looked  upon  his  religion  as  having  to  do  with  the 
salvation  of  his  soul — a  sort  of  school  in  which  he  is 
coached  in  catechism  and  creed,  that  he  may  be  pre- 
pared to  go  to  a  place  called  "heaven,"  after  death. 

When  the  true  church  is  revealed  to  his  soul,  all 
this  illusion  of  the  animal  man  is  dissolved.  He 


226  Talks  on  Truth 

finds  that  the  church  of  Jesus  Christ  has  to  do  with 
the  world  right  here  and  now ;  that  it  is  not  a  religion, 
as  he  has  been  accustomed  to  regard  religion;  that 
it  is  an  organic  principle  in  nature  working  along 
definite  lines  of  growth  in  the  building  up  of  a  state 
of  consciousness  for  the  whole  human  race. 

Thus  the  church  of  Jesus  Christ  is  an  exact  sci- 
ence. It  has  its  part  in  the  economy  of  Being,  as  the 
organizer  of  the  unorganized.  It  does  not  refer  to 
things  abstract,  but  to  things  concrete.  Whoever 
looks  upon  it  as  an  abstraction  has  wholly  miscon- 
ceived it. 

God  never  performs  miracles,  if  by  this  is  meant 
a  departure  from  universal  law.  Whatever  the 
prophets  did,  was  done  by  the  operation  of  laws  in- 
herent in  Being,  and  open  to  the  discovery  of  every 
man. 

Whatever  Jesus  of  Nazareth  did,  it  is  likewise 
the  privilege  of  every  man  to  do.  The  ability  to  do 
such  works  as  he  did,  is  simply  a  question  of  discern- 
ment. Discernment  comes  through  the  functioning 
of  an  orderly  organic  structure  in  the  soul  of  every 
man.  It  is  first  a  state  of  consciousness,  a  perception 
of  what  is  in  the  potential;  this  then  formulates  itself 
into  a  working  structure  that  becomes  in  every  man 
the  permanent  church  of  Christ. 

The  church  of  Christ  covers  every  department  of 
man's  existence,  and  enters  into  every  fiber  of  his 
being.  He  carries  it  with  him  day  and  night,  seven 
days  of  the  week.  He  lives  in  it  as  a  fish  lives  in 
water;  as  he  becomes  conscious  of  its  enveloping 
presence,  he  is  transformed  into  a  new  creature.  Life 


The  Church  of  Christ  227 

becomes  an  ecstasy,  and  his  cup  is  full  to  over- 
flowing. 

The  burdens  of  the  human  drop  out  of  sight  just 
as  fast  as  the  organic  church  is  constructed.  The 
construction  of  this  church  is  orderly,  definite,  and 
exact.  It  is  not  done  in  a  moment,  but,  brick  by 
brick,  the  man  is  built  from  the  within  to  the  without, 
a  new  creature  in  consciousness  and  in  body. 

This  means  that  your  body  will  be  so  trans- 
formed within  and  even  without,  that  it  will  never  go 
through  the  change  called  death.  It  will  be  a  resur- 
rected body,  becoming  more  and  more  refined  as 
you  catch  sight  of  the  free  truths  of  Being  until  it 
will  literally  disappear  from  the  sight  of  those  who 
see  with  the  eye  of  sense. 

This  is  the  way  in  which  the  last  enemy,  "death," 
is  to  be  overcome.  The  corruptible  shall  put  on  in- 
corruption  right  here  and  now.  Be  careful  not  to 
defer  this  change  to  some  future  state,  some  "day  of 
judgment,"  some  sound  of  a  "last  trump,"  but  recog- 
nize it  in  the  light  of  an  organic  change  going  on  in 
and  through  your  body,  from  day  to  day,  until  you 
literally  shine  with  the  glory  of  the  noonday  sun. 

This  is  the  promised  New  Jerusalem,  a  city  in 
which  neither  the  sun  nor  the  moon  is  necessary. 
This  is  the  city  of  God  within  you,  and  your  body 
shall  become  so  illuminated  by  the  brilliancy  of 
your  mind  that  the  light  streaming  forth  will  be 
brighter  than  that  of  the  sun.  This  is  not  a  fancy 
sketch,  but  a  statement  of  facts  based  upon  spiritual 
dynamics,  of  which  the  body  is  part. 

Metaphysicians  in  this  age  have  caught  sight  of 
these  possibilities  of  man  when  he  consciously  rec- 


228  Talks  on  Truth 

ognizes  his  relation  to  God  and  proceeds  to  carry 
out  in  thought,  and  to  act  right  here,  that  which  he 
perceives  to  be  true  in  Spirit ;  but  many  of  them  are 
not  wise  in  their  methods  of  attaining  the  ultimate  or- 
ganic building.  They  have  made  connection  with 
the  realm  of  ideas,  but  are  loath  to  comply  with  the 
requirements  of  organic  growth  from  the  generative 
idea,  to  its  concrete  structure.  This  growth  is  the 
construction  of  the  church  of  Jesus  Christ  in  each 
one  of  us,  and  it  is  a  most  delicate  and  intricate 
process.  No  external  architect  is  here  allowed ;  only 
the  Spirit  can  tell  what  is  necessary  from  day  to 
day,  and  the  Spirit  can  be  heard  only  by  the  atten- 
tive ego. 

If  you  have  any  ideas  of  your  own  as  to  how 
this  new  body  is  to  be  constructed,  drop  them  im- 
mediately. If  you  have  been  before  the  public  as 
a  teacher  of  Divine  Science,  and  have  set  up  in  con- 
sciousness abstract  theories  as  to  the  unreality  of  the 
body  and  its  sensations,  you  must  be  willing  to  give 
them  all  up,  before  you  can  be  received  into  the  re- 
generation. Although  you  may  have  served  the 
Truth  long  and  faithfully,  do  not  be  rebellious  if  all 
your  labors  seem  as  "dust  and  ashes."  The  rebel- 
lious Israelites  never  got  into  the  Promised  Land. 
You  must  be  obedient.  You  must  be  willing  to  give 
up  all  your  plans,  your  hopes,  and  your  ambitions. 
The  Spirit  wants  your  attention  only.  If  you  have 
done  good,  you  will  be  rewarded  in  the  process,  but 
you  must  not  claim  your  good  as  a  merit  card  which 
gives  you  any  preference  in  the  regeneration.  You 
must  be  willing  to  become  as  nothing  in  the  sight  of 
men — literally  crucified  for  your  good  works.  Then 


The  Church  of  Christ  229 

the  personal  mentality  loses  its  center,  the  atoms  of 
your  being  swiftly  change  their  polarization  from 
the  material  to  the  spiritual  plane,  and  you  come 
forth  from  the  tomb  of  sense  with  a  body  of  light. 


THE  LORD'S  BODY 

The  teaching  of  Christianity  is  that  the  human 
race  was  originally  in  a  beautiful  garden,  a  state  of 
consciousness  described  as  Paradise.  Here  were 
placed  before  the  race  two  ways  of  attaining  knowl- 
edge— one  through  experience,  the  other  through  the 
inspiration  and  guidance  of  God ;  and  they  chose  the 
diverse,  or  hard  way.  They  followed  Satan,  think- 
ing that,  through  experience,  they  would  get  wisdom 
and  pleasure.  In  their  ignorance,  they  fell  short 
of  the  law.  They  did  not  know  how  to  take  ad- 
vantage of  the  forces  of  mind,  and  the  result  was 
the  death  of  their  bodies. 

But  there  was  promise  of  restoration;  that  men 
should  come  back  into  that  paradise  or  place  where 
eternal  joy  and  satisfaction  exist ;  that,  through  Jesus 
Christ,  the  original  life  of  man  should  be  restored. 
Jesus  Christ  understood  the  law  of  God,  and  came 
to  show  us  the  way  to  live  our  lives,  to  resurrect  our- 
selves out  of  sin  and  death  into  immortality.  He 
resurrected  his  body  and  promised  that  those  who 
keep  his  sayings  and  follow  his  law  shall  likewise 
resurrect  their  bodies;  and  yet  nearly  two  thousand 
years  have  passed  and  no  man  has  demonstrated  the 
resurrection,  so  far  as  we  know.  The  teaching  has 
been  sidetracked  and  misunderstood.  The  popular 
Christianity  of  the  day  tells  us  that  resurrection 
is  of  the  soul !  that  it  is  to  take  place  after  death,  or 
in  some  future  time,  and  that  everybody  must  die. 

230 


The  Lord's  Body  231 

Now  a  new  consciousness,  a  new  understanding 
of  this  great  teaching  of  Jesus  Christ  is  needed. 
We  are  beginning  to  understand  it  scientifically. 
Our  physical  scientists  are  showing  us  in  their  labo 
ratories  that  life  should  be  continuous.  They  tell 
us  that  the  functions  of  our  bodies  are  self-perpetu- 
ating if  rightly  directed.  There  is  no  reason  why 
they  should  be  destroyed.  All  about  us  are  the 
forces  that  enter  into  these  bodies,  and  the  elements 
that  are  found  in  chemistry,  are  also  in  the  body  of 
flesh. 

The  inner  intelligence  is  able  to  reconstruct  the 
body ;  the  elements  for  rebuilding  are  around  us  and 
in  us.  All  conditions  join  to  make  possible  the  de- 
velopment of  an  immortal  structure  which  shall  ex- 
press man  in  his  true  nature.  The  intuitions  of  the 
soul  emphasize  the  point  that  deathless  life  here  and 
now  is  the  life  which  God  has  appointed  us  to  recall 
and  develop.  Not  until  we  have  done  this,  can  it  be 
said  that  we  have  availed  ourselves  of  the  Jesus 
Christ  redemption,  or  that  we  have  our  abiding  place 
in  the  Lord's  Body. 

Why  have  we  failed  for  these  two  thousand 
years?  Because  we  have  not  understood  and  ap- 
plied the  Divine  Law.  The  early  disciples  evi- 
dently caught  sight  of  the  great  truth  that  man  has 
within  himself  this  resurrecting  power  to  overcome 
disease  and  sickness,  but  they  did  not  fasten  it 
strongly  enough  in  the  race  experience,  and  man  has 
gotten  back  into  the  old  adverse  thought. 

We  must  first  reduce  our  religion  to  facts. 
What  do  we  know  about  it?  Verily,  "by  their  fruits 
ye  shall  know  them."  The  fruit  of  your  thought  is 


232  Talks  on  Truth 

your  body,  and  you  can  judge  your  thought  by  the 
character  of  your  body.  So  also  you  can  change 
your  body  by  changing  your  thoughts.  Then  here 
is  the  key  to  the  situation:  To  resurrect  this  body 
we  must  change  our  thoughts.  Every  thought  must 
be  in  accord  with  absolute  Truth,  and  there  must  be 
no  adverse  thought.  We  must  separate  ourselves 
from  all  thought  of  sickness,  weakness,  and  death. 
They  must  have  no  part  in  the  consciousness  of  the 
one  who  would  follow  Jesus  Christ. 

Divine  metaphysicians  take  special  care  that 
they  are  logical  in  their  reasoning.  They  hold  that 
all  truth  has  its  origin  in  Divine  Mind.  Whatever 
we  can  conceive  as  being  true,  must  work  itself  out 
in  creation,  and  if  the  creation  seems  to  fall  short  of 
the  Divine  Perfection  in  any  way,  it  is  a  fault  on  our 
part;  either  we  are  not  seeing  the  whole,  or  we  are 
lacking  in  understanding.  And  if  we  hold  to  our 
logic  that  the  Good  can  create  nothing  but  good,  it 
will  bring  us  to  the  right  conclusion,  and  the  mani 
festation  will  always  prove  itself.  Holding  to  this 
logic  of  the  mind,  and  the  conclusions  of  the  mind, 
we  find  that  there  are  two  creations — Divine  Mind 
idealizes  that  which  it  afterward  brings  forth,  just 
as  a  man  works  out  in  his  mind  his  invention  before 
he  makes  the  model.  God  is  the  all-potential  Mind. 
God  creates  first  in  thought;  his  idea  of  creation  is 
perfect,  and  that  idea  exists  as  a  perfect  model  upon 
which  all  manifestation  rests.  The  body  of  man 
must  rest  upon  a  Divine  Body  Idea  in  Divine  Mind, 
and  it  logically  follows  that  the  inner  life,  substance, 
and  intelligence  of  all  flesh  are  perfect.  But  you 
say,  "I  have  not  a  perfect  body;  my  body  is  not  the 


The  Lord's  Body  233 

perfect  idea,  because  I  can  see  it  is  material."  It 
may  be  that  you  do  not  understand ;  that  you  do  not 
discern  the  "Lord's  Body,"  which  lack,  Paul  said, 
was  the  cause  of  weakness  and  sickness  and  death. 

We  have  a  perfect  body  in  mind,  and  that  per- 
fect mind-body  is  expressing  itself  through  our  I 
AM,  or  the  Lord  God  in  us;  it  is  bringing  itself 
into  manifestation  just  as  fast  as  we  will  let  it,  just 
as  fast  as  we  perceive  God  in  the  flesh.  Do  you  not 
see  how  closely  you  must  follow  and  hold  yourself 
in  the  true  logic?  Plato  said,  "Pure  reason  is  the 
highest  faculty  of  the  mind."  Many  people  wander 
away  from  pure  reason  because  it  does  not  seem  to 
agree  with  the  sight  of  sense.  They  say  that  there  is 
evil  and  error  everywhere;  that  it  cannot  be,  then, 
that  good  is  the  reality  of  God,  man,  and  the  uni- 
verse. The  creative  law  makes  man  responsible  for 
the  bringing  forth  of  the  divine  perfection.  God 
finished  his  work  in  the  ideal,  and  we  are  making  it 
manifest.  If  your  body  is  not  perfect,  it  is  because 
you  have  not  let  into  your  consciousness  all  of  these 
perfections  which  exist  for  you  in  Divine  Mind,  and 
which  would  be  fully  expressed  through  you  as  they 
were  in  Jesus  Christ,  if  you  would  discern  the  truth  of 
the  real  ideal  body,  called  the  Lord's  Body. 

Then  if  I  want  to  see  the  real  expression  of  Di- 
vine Mind  in  my  body,  all  I  have  to  do  is  to  image  it 
mentally.  I  must  put  my  I  AM  identity  into  it  and 
affirm  that  the  perfect  body,  as  idealized  by  God, 
is  now  manifest  in  my  hands,  in  my  feet,  in  my 
heart,  and  in  every  part  of  my  organism.  Is  that 
good  logic?  Of  course  it  is.  Will  it  work?  Of 
course  it  will.  This  is  the  real  secret  of  metaphysical 


234  Talks  on  Truth 

healing.  In  the  beginning  the  Word  was  God,  but 
the  Word  became  flesh  and  dwelt  among  men  and 
they  saw  his  body,  his  glory,  and  his  perfection. 
Then  Jesus  Christ  was  the  Word  or  Idea  of  Divine 
Mind  made  manifest  in  form.  Jesus  saved  his  body 
from  dissolution,  and  raised  it  up  to  the  heavenly 
estate,  which  is  substance  so  pure  that  no  disinte- 
grating force  can  be  found  in  it.  This  gives  an  im- 
portance to  the  body  beyond  the  usual  estimate. 
People  think  that  soul  salvation  is  the  object  of  the 
Christian  life,  but  Jesus  and  Paul  laid  great  stress 
on  the  ability  of  man  to  "lay  it  down,  .  .  .  and 
take  it  again,"  even  this  "temple  of  God." 

Can  we  save  our  bodies  from  death?  Yes;  by 
seeing  them  as  the  very  temples  of  God;  and  that 
means  more  than  looking  at  them  as  if  you  were 
looking  through  a  telescope.  You  must  see  the 
body  with  your  mind.  See  it  with  something  more 
than  the  intellectual  mind.  See  it  with  Jehovah,  the 
Lord  God  within  you. 

When  the  Perfect  Man  is  conceived  in  pure 
reason,  the  reason  of  Spirit,  and  man  sees  himself  as 
he  is  in  God's  mind,  the  Lord's  body  begins  at  once 
to  appear.  We  can  all  see  our  bodies  with  the 
"single  eye"  that  Jesus  spoke  of,  and  through  this 
faith  in  the  reality  of  the  invisible  body  regenerate 
the  flesh.  The  body  is  wonderfully  obedient  to  the 
I  AM  mind.  It  hastens  to  do  its  bidding,  and  is  re- 
newed and  transformed  by  a  thought.  But  so  many 
of  us  see  the  body  as  it  appears  to  mortal  sense,  and 
by  thus  seeing  it,  we  put  it  under  the  laws  governing 
that  kind  of  body. 

The  real  continues;  the  seeming  passes  away. 


The  Lord's  Body  235 

We  know  that  we  are  healed  by  right  thought,  that 
we  can  and  do  raise  these  sick  bodies  and  restore 
them  to  health.  Where  is  the  limit  to  that  healing? 
There  is  none.  Can  you  not  go  right  on  and  perfect 
the  manifestation  of  the  Body  Idea  as  it  is  conceived 
in  Divine  Mind?  That  is  where  pure  reason  and 
logic  sustain  us.  It  does  not  make  any  difference 
how  many  people  have  died  or  how  many  are  going 
to  die,  the  logic  is  good  if  it  proves  the  healing  of  a 
single  ill.  It  is  a  real  pleasure  to  know  that  there 
is  somebody  behind  this  universe ;  that  there  is  a  real 
God ;  that  life  is  something  more  than  the  mere  piling 
up  of  material  things;  that  we  can  become  the  real 
man  and  that  all  the  pure  ideals  can  be  fulfilled  here 
and  now. 

The  real  body  of  God  is  a  live  body.  It  knows. 
It  is  a  living  body.  Above  all  it  is  a  beautiful  body. 
And  God  himself  is  to  be  in  that  temple,  and  it  will 
not  be  necessary  to  have  any  external  light,  for  the 
Light  celestial  will  illuminate  the  redeemed  body 
in  which  God  takes  up  an  eternal  habitation.  It  is 
wonderful  how  quickly  the  body  responds  to  thoughts 
of  life  and  health,  and  how  you  can  get  a  flow 
of  health  instantly,  if  you  hold  the  right  thoughts. 
Just  closing  the  outer  sense  and  holding  the  thought 
that  you  are  the  perfect  manifestation  of  Divine 
Mind  will  often  heal  the  body  of  its  ills.  We 
see  the  disease  and  cling  to  it,  when  it  is  trying  to 
get  away,  all  the  time.  Disease  is  not  natural,  and 
it  knows  it.  Then  relax  a  little  and  let  the  Spirit 
carry  on  its  perfect  work  in  you,  and  all  at  once  evil 
or  sick  conditions  will  disappear  and  you  will  be 
whole.  All  good  healers  will  tell  you  that  their 


236  Talks  on  Truth 

best  work  is  done  by  simply  letting  go  and  realizing 
that  there  is  but  one  universal  Mind,  and  that  that 
Mind  makes  a  perfect  body  for  every  man. 

We  see  this  law  proved  again  and  again  in  the 
healing  power  of  nature.  All  doctors  admit  that  the 
body  is  naturally  restored  to  health;  that  neither 
they  nor  their  drugs  do  the  healing.  What  causes 
this  restoration?  The  Divine  Idea  of  perfection. 
So  our  bodies  really  are  the  temples  of  the  living 
God.  These  so-called  material  bodies  have  within 
them  and  about  them  the  divine  perfection.  Do  not 
make  any  separation.  Hold  that  your  body  is  spir- 
itual, and  do  not  hold  anything  less.  It  does  not 
make  any  difference  how  much  your  flesh  cries  out. 
It  may  be  that  flesh  and  blood  and  bones  can  be 
expressed  in  a  larger  and  better  way ;  that  is  for  you 
to  determine — but  insist  upon  the  truth.  Carry  out 
that  living,  true  Word  which  every  one  of  us  knows 
to  be  the  offspring  of  Divine  Mind.  "And  the 
Word  became  flesh,  and  dwelt  among  us." 


THE   RESTORATION   OF   GOD'S  KING- 
DOM 

Once  to  every  man  and  nation  comes  the  moment  to  decide, 
In  the  strife  of  Truth  with  Falsehood,  for  the  good  or  evil 

side; 
Some  great  cause,  God's  new  Messiah,  offering  each  the 

bloom  or  blight, 
Parts  the  goats  upon  the  left  hand,  and  the  sheep  upon  the 

right, 
And  the  choice  goes  on  forever  'twixt  that  darkness  and 

that  light. 

— Lowell. 

The  promise  that  the  garden  of  Eden  will  be 
restored  on  earth,  is  older  than  the  Bible.  Other 
bibles  of  other  peoples  far  antedating  the  Hebrews, 
prophesy  a  time  when  man  shall  possess  the  earth 
in  peace  and  plenty ;  a  time  when  the  elements  shall 
be  subdued,  disease  and  death  eliminated,  and  im- 
mortal life  in  the  body  be  again  set  up.  It  should 
be  observed  that  all  prophecies  to  this  end  that  come 
through  mystical  channels,  say  that  this  is  a  state  to 
be  regained.  They  do  not  hint  at  evolution,  as 
understood  in  modem  thought.  But  the  students  of 
physical  science  arrive  through  their  deductions  at 
virtually  the  same  conclusions  as  to  the  ultimate 
condition  of  humanity. 

They  also  agree  that  this  condition  of  peace  and 
happiness  will  be  brought  about  through  causes 
originating  largely  with  man  and  his  acts.  In  other 
words,  its  consummation  will  depend  upon  the  wis- 

237 


238  Talks  on  Truth 

dom  and  energy  with  which  men  act  at  certain  crises 
in  history.  These  prophets,  both  ancient  and  mod- 
ern, say  that  we  are  now  at  one  of  the  most  vital 
turning  points  in  our  experience.  They  get  at  it  in  a 
variety  of  ways,  and  they  differ  widely  in  minor 
points,  but  they  are  unanimous  in  their  conclusions 
that  now  is  the  time  foretold  by  prophets  of  old,  and 
reiterated  by  prophets  new. 

But  it  does  not  require  the  prophet's  perception 
to  discern  the  signs  of  these  times.  The  dissolution 
of  the  old  and  the  birth  of  the  new  are  manifest  in 
every  walk  of  life.  For  instance,  the  thought  that 
has  been  held  inviolate  for  thousands  of  years  about 
the  opaqueness  of  matter  has  recently  been  shat- 
tered. The  materialist  and  his  world  are  no  more. 
This,  however,  is  only  a  minor  example  of  the  as- 
tounding swiftness  with  which  the  material  sense  of 
things  has  been  dissolved  in  recent  years.  The  past 
half-century  has  witnessed  more  of  this  than  the 
history  of  all  the  world  records  before.  The  past 
ten  years  have  accelerated  this  dissolution  at  a  tre- 
mendous pace,  and  a  prominent  scientist  says  that 
the  changes  have  been  so  many  that  the  textbooks 
of  nearly  every  science  will  have  to  be  re-written. 
Yet  those  who  are  watching  the  mental  realm  know 
that  still  greater  changes  are  going  on  there.  The 
religious  world  of  a  few  years  ago  does  not  exist 
today.  There  is  but  one  sect  in  all  Christendom 
that  stands  by  its  creed  and  carries  forward  its  work 
in  the  old  lines.  All  the  others  are  shaken  to  their 
foundations.  Their  creeds  and  dogmas  are  skel- 
etons in  their  closets,  which  they  do  not  care  to 
talk  about. 


The  Restoration  of  Cod's  Kingdom  239 

In  politics  and  in  government  the  same  upheavals 
are  at  work.  The  rights  of  men  are  no  longer 
theories;  they  are  about  to  become  real  conditions 
in  the  world  of  affairs.  So  from  any  plane  of  ob- 
servation which  may  be  chosen,  we  can  assert  with 
the  conviction  of  truth  that  a  crisis  is  here.  Some- 
thing is  happening.  All  along  the  line  are  evidences 
of  the  birth  of  the  Prince  of  Peace.  A  higher  state 
of  consciousness  is  bursting  full  blown  upon  the 
whole  race.  It  is  everywhere;  and  those  who  are 
most  open  to  its  influx  are  being  rewarded.  The 
power  is  abroad  in  the  earth,  and  it  calls  to  men  and 
nations,  "Come  up  higher." 

All  this  presages  a  new  state  of  consciousness 
for  the  whole  race.  It  is  the  beginning  of  the  visible 
reign  of  the  Christ,  whose  seed-man  was  Jesus  of 
Nazareth.  Every  state  of  consciousness  is  first 
planted  as  a  seed-idea  by  some  one  man  or  woman. 
So  Jesus  of  Nazareth  planted  the  seed-thoughts  that 
are  now  springing  up  in  so  many  forms  and  shapes. 
He  it  was  who  went  into  all  the  domains  of  thought 
and  formulated  ideas  that  have  waited  for  a  people 
who  could  comprehend  and  utilize  them.  We  are 
that  people.  The  dawn  of  the  millennium  is  in  our 
keeping.  We  possess  the  keys  that  open  the  gates 
of  the  New  Jerusalem. 

It  should  not  be  assumed  that  this  refers  to  any 
particular  sect  or  class,  but  to  all  people  of  this  great 
time  who  are  open  to  spiritual  understanding.  The 
keys  are  presented  to  those  who  come  into  a  percep- 
tion that  all  is  mind,  and  that  all  things  and  con- 
ditions are  representative  states  of  consciousness, 
produced  through  the  free  action  of  the  I  AM  in 


240  Talks  on  Truth 

every  man  and  woman.  This  is  the  key  which  is  be- 
ing intrusted  to  many  in  this  great  day  of  the  Lord. 

But  the  possession  of  this  key  is  not  all.  A  key 
is  for  use.  We  may  know  all  about  the  way  mind 
formulates  states  of  consciousness,  and  all  about  our 
relation  to  God,  but  unless  we  have  made  a  change 
in  our  consciousness  and  realized,  in  a  measure  at 
least,  the  presence  of  God  in  our  minds,  we  are  not 
using  the  key.  Theory  is  one  thing;  practice  is  an- 
other. 

The  balanced  mind  no  longer  seeks  to  do  evil, 
and  the  factor  of  evil  no  longer  enters  into  its  prob- 
lem; but  a  proper  discrimination  between  the  endur- 
ing, permanent  things  of  existence,  and  the  transient 
and  evanescent  is  not  so  common.  To  choose  wisely 
in  this  respect  requires  wisdom  and  spiritual  per- 
ception. Those  who  are  unconsciously  building  on 
the  shifting  sands  of  the  material  world  are  many. 
They  try  to  perpetuate  the  existing  state  of  things 
by  calling  them  spiritual,  and  their  ideals  are  but 
little  removed  from  the  materialistic.  The  "new 
heaven  and  the  new  earth"  are  not  to  be  darkened 
nor  cumbered  by  any  conditions  that  exist  today. 
All  things  are  to  be  made  new.  This  is  the  promise 
of  all  the  prophets  of  all  the  ages.  There  is  to  be 
no  more  war,  nor  sorrow,  nor  crying,  nor  pain; 
hence,  all  conditions  that  cause  these  must  be  de- 
stroyed. 

Our  ideal  world  must  be  formed  in  mind  on  a 
very  high  plane.  We  may  choose  to  build  it  from 
the  standpoint  of  the  most  transcendent  dreams  of 
humanity's  perfection.  Nothing  less  will  answer, 
and  all  attempts  to  bring  forth  the  new  civilization 


The  Restoration  of  Cod's  Kingdom  241 

upon  any  lower  plane,  will  mean  failure  to  the  true 
metaphysician  of  the  Jesus  Christ  school.  Jesus 
Christ  has  a  distinct  school.  He  has  his  ideals; 
they  have  been  sown  in  the  minds  of  men,  and  will 
surely  come  to  fruitage.  He  saw  a  people  here  on 
earth  with  all  the  powers  of  the  gods,  but  he  did  not 
look  to  governments,  nor  churches,  nor  industrial 
movements  to  bring  about  the  civilization  he  planned. 

His  kingdom  is  now  ready  to  be  set  up.  The 
conditions  are  ripe  for  it.  It  is  open  to  all,  but  only 
those  may  come  in  who  are  willing  to  give  up  all 
their  ideas  of  earthly  possessions  for  it.  "Seek  ye 
first  his  kingdom,  and  his  righteousness ;  and  all  these 
things  shall  be  added  unto  you."  This  admonition 
still  holds  good,  and  its  fulfillment  is  capable  of  visi- 
ble realization  by  those  who  are  willing  to  accept 
the  conditions.  But  it  is  not  to  be  attained  in  the 
Ananias  and  Sapphira  way.  There  can  be  no  reser- 
vation. Every  earthly  link  must  be  broken,  every 
mortal  love  crucified.  This  was  the  way  by  which 
Jesus  of  Nazareth  got  into  this  kingdom,  and  his  way 
is  the  way  we  must  employ. 

It  is  not  for  us  to  quarrel  with  the  conditions  of 
the  world,  nor  take  upon  ourselves  the  burden  of 
righting  them.  That  is  a  long,  circuitous  route  into 
the  kingdom,  and  those  who  are  choosing  it  have 
many  weary  years  of  waiting  before  them.  We  are 
to  accept  that  which  is  now  prepared  for  us.  The 
feast  is  ready,  and  the  invitations  are  out.  This  is 
no  longer  a  parable,  but  an  exact  statement  of  that 
which  really  exists  in  the  very  atmosphere  of  this 
planet.  There  is  a  state  of  consciousness,  which 
can  be  attained  and  is  being  attained  by  men,  where 


242  Talks  on  Truth 

all  things  are  provided  to  fulfill  the  desires  of  the  re- 
generated souls.  It  is  not  removed  to  some  problem- 
atical heaven,  nor  is  it  on  some  distant  planet;  but 
right  here  in  our  midst  are  the  form  and  substance  of 
that  condition  promised  by  Jesus  Christ. 

The  day  is  not  distant  when  this  kingdom  will 
have  its  place  in  the  geography  of  this  people,  and 
those  who  have  chosen  it,  will  be  known  to  exist 
under  laws  and  through  means  beyond  the  ken  of 
the  Adam  man.  The  way  into  this  kingdom  is 
through  the  mind,  and  its  doors  all  open  in  response 
to  n>orJs. 

If  the  "kingdom  of  heaven"  which  Jesus  so  often 
referred  to,  is  a  city  with  golden  streets,  in  the  skies, 
he  could  easily  have  located  it ;  but  he  did  nothing  of 
the  kind.  On  the  contrary,  he  again  and  again  gave 
illustrations  to  show  his  listeners  that  it  is  a  desirable 
condition  which  can  be  brought  about  among  them 
by  the  power  of  the  Spirit.  He  did  not  speak  of  it 
as  situated  anywhere  in  particular,  or  say  that  it 
could  be  attained  quickly.  For  instance,  in  Luke 
13,  "Unto  what  is  the  kingdom  of  God  like?  and 
whereunto  shall  I  liken  it?  It  is  like  unto  a  grain  of 
mustard  seed,  which  a  man  took,  and  cast  into  his 
own  garden;  and  it  grew,  and  became  a  tree;  and 
the  birds  of  the  heaven  lodged  in  the  branches  there- 
of." And  again,  "It  is  like  unto  leaven,  which  a 
woman  took  and  hid  in  three  measures  of  meal,  till 
it  was  all  leavened." 

It  is  a  great  mystery  how  these  comparisons  of 
heaven  ever  came  to  be  construed  to  refer  in  any 
way  to  a  locality  in  the  skies.  What  relation  to  a 
city  with  streets  of  gold  has  a  mustard  seed,  planted 


The  Restoration  of  Cols  Kingdom  243 

in  the  earth  and  springing  forth  into  a  tree?  or  a 
little  cake  of  yeast  fermenting  a  baking  of  bread? 

A  remarkably  strange  lot  of  comparisons  this 
wise  one  used,  if  he  had  in  mind  a  place  where  the 
good  were  to  go  after  death ! 

But  he  never  pretended  to  represent  any  such 
thing.  His  command  to  his  disciples  fully  carries 
out  his  idea  of  the  kingdom  of  heaven.  It  was  a 
condition  to  be  brought  about  in  the  affairs  of  men. 
It  was  to  grow  from  small  beginnings,  like  the  mus- 
tard seed  or  yeast  cake.  His  disciples  were  sent 
forth  to  sow  this  seed  in  a  definite  way,  by  carrying 
into  the  midst  of  men  the  signs  that  evidence  the 
power  of  the  Spirit  through  which  the  kingdom  of 
heaven  is  to  be  established  right  here  on  this  planet. 
There  is  no  basis  for  any  other  view.  All  the  vision- 
ary theories  about  a  place  called  "heaven,"  are 
founded  on  John's  symbolical  description  of  the 
New  Jerusalem,  which  was  a  picture  in  imagination 
of  the  fulfillment  on  earth  of  the  very  movement  in- 
augurated by  Jesus,  and  by  him  described  as  having 
such  small  beginnings.  The  city  which  John  saw, 
was  among  men.  "Behold,  the  tabernacle  of  God 
is  with  men,  and  he  shall  dwell  with  them,  and  they 
shall  be  his  peoples,  and  God  himself  shall  be  with 
them,  and  be  their  God:  and  he  shall  wipe  away 
every  tear  from  their  eyes;  and  death  shall  be  no 
more;  neither  shall  there  be  mourning,  nor  crying, 
nor  pain,  any  more:  the  first  things  are  passed  away." 
This  all  describes  what  is  to  take  place  here  among 
us.  No  reference  is  made  to  its  being  among  angels, 
nor  that  it  was  established  at  the  time  that  John  saw 


244  Talks  on  Truth 

the  vision.  It  means  that  heaven  is  to  be  consum- 
mated in  new  conditions  on  earth. 

If  the  kingdom  taught  by  Jesus  is  in  the  skies, 
why  did  he  direct  his  disciples  to  pray,  "Thy  king- 
dom come.  Thy  will  be  done,  as  in  heaven,  so  on 
earth." 

The  fact  that  the  kingdom  of  heaven  is  at  hand 
and  "within  you,"  the  sense  man  totally  ignores. 
He  does  not  see  beyond  the  range  of  the  three  limi- 
tations of  space,  hence  cannot  cognize  that  which 
lies  within  and  is  interlaced  on  another  plane  of  phe- 
nomena. The  kingdom  of  heaven  is  not  only  an 
ideal  realm  in  which  all  possibility  is  freely  trans- 
formed into  externality,  but  it  also  has  its  exter- 
nality, as  tangible  to  the  higher  faculties  as  are  the 
aspects  of  nature  to  the  sense  man.  It  has  its  work- 
ing plans,  and  it  executes  them  with  a  fidelity  and  an 
accuracy  not  comprehended  by  the  lax  methods  of 
the  lower  plane.  So  you  who  have  looked  at  the 
kingdom  of  heaven  as  a  potentiality  to  be  made  by 
the  power  of  your  word,  should  change  your  base 
and  see  it  as  it  is — a  real  place  already  formed,  and 
waiting  for  you,  as  a  bride  adorned  for  her  husband. 

It  is  here  all  about  you;  the  knowledge  of  its 
presence  only  awaits  the  opening  of  your  interior 
eye,  the  "single  eye"  which  Jesus  taught.  When 
you  look  with  this  eye  your  whole  body  is  made  full 
of  the  light  which  is  neither  of  the  sun  nor  the  moon, 
but  of  the  Father. 

As  a  disciple,  it  is  not  necessary  that  any  one 
should  know  all  the  intricacies  of  the  metaphysical 
law;  he  has  simply  to  act  on  his  inspiration.  He 
needs  only  to  preach  the  kingdom  of  heaven  at  hand, 


The  Restoration  of  Cod's  Kingdom  245 

and  it  will  so  manifest  itself.  Electricians  do  not 
know  what  electricity  is,  nor  have  they  compassed  its 
laws.  They  have  found  that  an  unknown  principle 
in  nature,  is  made  manifest  when  they  observe  cer- 
tain conditions.  They  simply  make  the  mechanical 
apparatus,  set  it  in  motion,  and  the  invisible  unknown 
becomes  visible. 

In  the  world  of  ideas,  the  metaphysician  has  dis- 
covered that  there  is  a  realm  having  potentialities 
whose  depths  he  has  not  sounded.  This  realm  is  to 
him  the  greatest  storehouse  of  Wisdom  and  Life, 
and  he  finds  that  his  own  center  of  consciousness  is 
like  unto  it.  He  is  essentially  one  with  it.  His 
thinking  faculty  represents  the  mechanical  device 
through  which  this  All-Principle  is  made  manifest. 
His  word  sets  the  machinery  in  motion,  and  results 
follow  in  the  realm  of  ideas  in  manner  parallel  with 
those  in  the  realm  of  dynamics.  When  you  know 
this,  you  have  the  working  plan  upon  which  is  based 
discipleship.  Then  go  forth  and  preach,  "The  king- 
dom of  heaven  is  at  hand."  As  to  defining  what 
that  kingdom  is  like,  you  must  be  guided  by  the 
Spirit  of  Truth  alone. 

The  great  Master  could  not  describe  it  to  men 
on  the  sense  plane  except  in  symbols.  He  said  it 
was  like  a  pearl  of  great  price,  to  possess  which  the 
discoverer  sold  all  that  he  had.  He  compared  its 
growth  in  the  mind  to  a  small  seed  or  a  little  leaven. 
He  summed  it  all  up  in  these  words,  "The  kingdom 
of  God  is  within  you." 

You  cannot  understand  mathematics  until  you 
have  studied  mathematics;  neither  can  you  under- 
stand what  the  kingdom  of  heaven  is  like,  until  you 


246  Talks  on  Truth 

have  studied  that  kingdom  on  its  own  spiritual  plane. 
Awake!  thou  that  sleepest  in  the  sense  mind! 
Rouse  yourself,  for  the  kingdom  of  heaven  is  at 
hand.  You  are  a  king!  Bestir  yourself;  the  Christ 
of  God  is  born  in  you,  and  the  hour  of  your  reign 
is  at  hand! 


HOW    MENTAL    HEALING     IS    DONE 

From  a  study  of  the  foregoing  lessons,  you 
should  be  convinced  that  man  and  the  universe  are 
under  the  direct  creative  power  of  a  supreme  Be- 
ing— name  it  what  you  will ;  and  that  man  needs  but 
to  conform  to  the  laws  of  creative  Power  to 
be  healthy,  happy,  and  wise.  It  logically  occurs 
to  you  that  all  healing  methods,  whether  applied  to 
self  or  others,  consist  in  making  a  unity  between  the 
individual  and  the  universal  Consciousness.  No 
man  heals  himself  or  another;  the  supreme  Mind 
does  the  work.  "The  Father  abiding  in  me  doeth 
his  works,"  said  Jesus.  This  is  the  testimony  of  all 
the  truly  wise. 

The  first  move  in  all  healing  is  a  recognition  on 
your  part  and  on  the  part  of  your  patient,  that  God 
is  present  as  an  all-powerful  Mind,  equal  to  the 
healing  of  every  disease,  no  matter  how  bad  it  may 
appear.  "With  God  all  things  are  possible."  The 
best  way  to  make  this  unity  with  the  Father-Mind, 
is  by  prayer.  "God  is  Spirit,"  and  he  has  a  king- 
dom or  ruling  center  in  every  soul.  Do  not  look  up 
or  out  for  God,  but  "pray  to  thy  Father  who  is  in 
secret" — silently  within  your  own  soul — "and  he 
will  reward  you  openly."  Many  healers  use  the 
Lord's  Prayer  at  the  beginning  of  every  treatment. 
Talk  to  the  Father  as  if  he  were  a  present  identity. 
He  is  visible  to  your  soul,  and  when  you  have  at- 
tained that  certain  inner  confidence  called  faith,  you 

247 


248  Talks  on  Truth 

will  realize  his  presence  as  clearly  as  you  realize 
visible  things.  When  you  have  stilled  the  outer 
senses  and  are  quiet,  you  are  in  the  mental  realm 
where  thoughts  are  obedient  to  the  Word.  Error 
thoughts  must  be  told  to  go,  and  true  thoughts  must 
be  called  to  take  their  places. 

Thought  causes  are  so  complex  that  it  is  im- 
possible to  point  out  in  all  cases  the  specific  thought 
that  causes  a  certain  disease;  but  twelve  fundamen- 
tal mind  activities  lie  at  the  base  of  all  existence, 
and  when  any  one  of  these  is  sounded  all  the  others 
give  attention. 

Nearly  all  sick  people  lack  vital  force,  hence  the 
Life  treatment  is  good  for  all.  Hate,  anger,  jeal- 
ousy, malice,  etc.,  are  almost  universal  in  human 
consciousness,  and  a  treatment  for  Love  will  prove  a 
healing  balm.  Fear  of  poverty  burdens  most  people, 
and  the  Prosperity  treatment  will  be  effective.  Do 
not  be  afraid  to  use  the  statements  in  healing,  as  a 
whole  or  in  part;  they  will  always  help  and  never 
hurt  any  one.  Remember  the  object  of  all  treat- 
ment is  to  raise  the  mind  to  the  Christ  Consciousness, 
through  which  all  true  healing  is  accomplished. 

SAMPLE  TREATMENTS 

FEAR,  ANXIETY,   WORRY,   DREAD,   AND  SUSPENSE 

These  thoughts  cause  the  mind  to  become  tense, 
thus  shutting  away  the  great  Helper,  the  Spirit  of 
Truth.  Say  silently,  "I  am  now  free  from  fear, 
anxiety,  worry,  dread,  and  suspense.  I  have  faith 
in  and  trust  the  Holy  Spirit  to  protect  me,  to  pro- 
vide for  me,  and  to  bring  all  my  affairs  into  Divine 
Order." 


How  Menial  Healing  Is  Done  249 

NERVOUSNESS 

The  mind  sends  its  messages  along  the  nerves; 
the  nerves,  themselves,  being  a  form  of  mind,  get 
into  a  chronic  cross-current  condition  from  repeated 
anxious,  worried,  fearful  thoughts,  and  the  many 
forms  of  "nervousness"  result.  This  idea  must  be 
specifically  denied  and  the  Truth  affirmed.  Say 
silently,  "I  am  not  subject  to  any  kind  of  nervous- 
ness. My  nerves  are  harmonized,  peaceful,  and 
poised  in  Spirit  and  in  Truth." 

NOTE — Deny  the  mental  cause  first,  then  the 
physical  appearance.  "Nervousness"  is  produced 
by  worry,  anxiety,  etc.  These  mental  conditions 
should  first  be  healed,  then  the  secondary  state  which 
they  have  produced  in  the  body  must  be  wiped  out, 
and  the  perfect  condition  affirmed. 

COLDS,  GRIPPE,  AND  INFLUENZAS 

Affirm:  "Spirit  is  not  subject  to  heat  nor  cold. 
I  am  Spirit.  I  am  the  positive  force  of  Being,  and  I 
put  out  of  my  consciousness  all  negative  thoughts. 
I  do  not  believe  in  that  thing  called  'a  cold,'  nor  do 
I  admit  for  a  moment  that  it  has  any  power  over  me. 
I  am  Spirit,  free-flowing  life,  and  my  circulation  is 
equalized  in  God." 

INDIGESTION,  DYSPEPSIA,  AND  STOMACH  TROUBLES 

Treatment:  "My  understanding  is  established 
in  Spirit.  I  know  the  relation  between  mind  and 
body,  between  thought  and  substance.  I  agree 
with  what  I  eat,  and  what  I  eat  agrees  with  me.  I 
am  at  peace  with  all  men  and  all  things.  I  do  not 
resist  nor  antagonize  anybody  or  anything.  My 


250  Talks  on  Truth 

stomach  is  strong,  wise,  and  energetic,  and  I  always 
think  and  speak  of  it  as  in  every  way  capable  of 
doing  the  work  given  it  to  do.  I  do  not  impose 
upon  my  stomach  by  overloading  it.  I  am  guided 
by  Divine  Wisdom  in  eating  and  drinking,  and  I  fol- 
low its  dictates,  instead  of  sense  appetite.  I  am  no 
longer  anxious  about  what  I  shall  eat  or  what  I  shall 
drink.  I  am  not  hurried  nor  worried,  but  rest  after 
each  meal  from  all  the  cares  of  life,  and  give  my 
stomach  opportunity  to  do  its  perfect  work  under 
the  Divine  Law." 

ALL  LIVER  TROUBLES 

Treatment:  "I  am  not  misjudged  nor  do  I 
misjudge  others.  I  do  not  criticize  nor  condemn.  I 
do  not  hold  bitter,  revengeful  thoughts  against 
others.  I  do  not  think  that  I  have  been  unjustly 
treated.  God-Mind  is  my  supreme  Arbiter,  and  I 
rest  all  judgment  in  the  Divine  Law  of  justice. 

"The  quick,  swift  energy  of  Spirit  now  pene- 
trates and  permeates  every  atom  of  my  liver,  and  it 
is  free  to  do  its  perfect  work." 

KIDNEY,  BLADDER,  AND  URINAL  DISORDERS 

"God  is  the  strength  of  my  life.  I  do  not  be- 
lieve in  exhaustion  of  strength.  Strength  is  always 
present  in  its  supreme  completeness,  and  I  am  eter- 
nally strong.  Spirit  is  the  strength  of  my  loins,  and 
my  back  is  free  from  all  thought  of  burdens. 

"My  life  is  divinely  ordered,  and  I  am  not  afraid 
of  weakness,  old  age,  or  death.  All  the  issues  of  my 
life  are  from  God,  and  he  is  a  well  of  living  water 
within  me. 


How  Mental  Healing  Is  Done  25 1 

"Lustful  passions  no  longer  separate  me  from 
the  pure,  spiritual  life.  My  life  is  lifted  up  by  the 
Christ  Mind,  and  I  am  resurrected  from  the  dead. 
My  life  is  hid  with  Christ  in  God." 

ALL  THROAT  AFFECTIONS 

Treatment:  "All  power  is  given  unto  me,  in 
heaven  (mind)  and  on  earth  (body).  Dominion, 
control,  mastery,  are  mine  by  divine  right,  and  I 
refuse  to  believe  in  failure  or  discouragement. 

"I  am  free,  and  the  inspiration  of  Spirit  is 
poured  into  my  soul.  I  am  quickened  by  the  Spirit, 
and  the  flesh  is  obedient.  I  rejoice  and  am  glad  be- 
cause the  joy  of  Christ  is  mine.  I  am  filled  with 
Spirit-energy,  and  every  cell  in  my  organism  is  alight 
with  God.  I  am  the  resurrection  and  the  life." 

SIX  DAYS'  TREATMENT 

It  is  found  that  the  mind  establishes  permanent 
consciousness  through  six  steps  or  degrees,  called  in 
Genesis  "days." 

First,  the  mind  perceives  and  affirms  Truth  to 
be  a  universal  Principle.  Second,  faith  in  the  work- 
ing power  of  Truth  is  born  to  consciousness.  Third, 
Truth  takes  definite  form  in  mind.  Fourth,  the  will 
carries  Truth  into  acts.  Fifth,  discrimination  is 
quickened  and  the  difference  between  Truth  and 
error  discerned.  Sixth,  every  thought  and  word  is 
expressed  in  harmony  with  Truth. 

The  seventh  day  is  a  peaceful  confidence  and 
rest  in  the  fulfillment  of  the  Divine  Law. 

By  the  use  of  these  denials  and  affirmations 
for  one  week,  a  new  and  more  orderly  basis  of 


252  Talks  on  Truth 

thought  is  established  in  mind,  and  the  whole  man 
is  harmonized  and  vitalized.  This  process  often 
heals  obstinate  cases,  and  the  six-days'  course  is 
recommended  in  conjunction  with  the  special  treat- 
ments. 

Make  your  "denials"  as  if  you  were  gently 
sweeping  away  cobwebs,  and  your  "affirmations" 
with  strong,  bold,  vehement,  positive  mind. 

Each  day's  treatment,  and  the  whole  course  if 
necessary,  is  to  be  repeated  over  and  over  until  it 
manifests  its  living  presence  and  potency  in  con- 
sciousness. 

If  you  desire  to  help  another  who  will  not  try, 
or  who  cannot  himself  successfully  bring  his  mind 
into  harmonious  relations  with  this  Principle,  think 
of  that  one  when  you  hold  the  daily  thought,  and  the 
Spirit  will  cause  your  word  to  manifest  both  in  you 
and  in  your  patient. 


INVOCATION 

(To  precede  each  day's  treatment.) 

I  acknowledge  thy  presence  and  power,  O 
blessed  Spirit,  and  in  thy  Divine  Wisdom  now 
erase  my  mortal  limitations,  and  from  thy  pure  sub- 
stance of  Love,  bring  into  manifestation  my  world, 
according  to  thy  perfect  law. 

MONDAY 

[DENY] — I  am  no  longer  foolish  nor  ignorant, 
and  the  foolishness  and  ignorance  of  ancestry  can 
no  longer  be  visited  upon  me. 

I  am  free  from  the  foolishness  and  ignorance  of 


How  Mental  Heating  Is  Done  253 

the  race  and  those  with  whom  I  associate.  The 
foolishness  and  ignorance  which  may  have  been 
treasured  up  by  my  own  understanding,  are  now 
erased. 

[AFFIRM] — I  am  wise  with  the  wisdom  of  In- 
finite Mind,  and  have  knowledge  of  all  things.  I 
know  that  I  am  pure  intelligence,  and  I  hereby  claim 
my  divine  right  to  light,  life,  and  liberty,  in  all  good- 
ness, wisdom,  love,  and  purity.  Let  the  light  of 
Wisdom  appear  and  the  ignorance  of  human  thought 
vanish. 

TUESDAY 

[DENY] — I  deny  the  belief  that  I  have  in- 
herited disease,  sickness,  ignorance,  or  any  mental 
limitations  whatsoever.  I  deny  all  belief  in  evil,  for 
God  made  all  that  really  is,  and  pronounced  it  good. 
Therefore,  no  such  deception  as  belief  in  evil  can 
darken  my  clear  understanding  of  Truth.  Those 
with  whom  I  associate  can  no  longer  deceive  me 
with  their  words  of  consideration  and  sympathy. 
I  can  no  longer  deceive  myself  with  such  weakness. 

Perish  from  my  world  these  silly  beliefs  of  dark- 
ened ignorance.  I  am  now  free  from  them  all,  and 
by  my  powerful  word  hereby  destroy  them  wholly. 

[AFFIRM] — God's  life  is  my  life,  and  I  vibrate 
with  harmony  and  wholeness.  I  am  free  with  the 
knowledge  that  all  is  good;  I  am,  therefore,  per- 
fectly whole  and  well. 

WEDNESDAY 

[DENY] — I  deny  the  belief  that  I  am  a  child 
of  the  flesh  and  must  suffer  the  sins  of  my  forefathers 


254  Talks  on  Truth 

"even  unto  the  third  and  fourth  generation."  Per- 
ish all  such  ignorant  claims. 

I  deny  that  I  inherited  from  my  ancestors  lustful 
passions  and  sensual  appetites. 

I  deny  the  belief  that  the  race  can  reflect  upon 
me  lustful  passions  and  sensual  appetites.  I  deny 
the  belief  that  those  with  whom  I  associate  can  re- 
flect upon  me  lustful  passions  or  sensual  appetites.  I 
deny  my  own  ignorant  belief  in  such  erroneous  ideas. 

[AFFIRM] — God  is  Spirit,  and  I — the  Divine 
Image — am  Spirit.  I  am  born  of  God.  God  is 
too  pure  to  behold  iniquity,  and  I  am,  therefore, 
pure  Being,  without  a  tinge  of  lust  or  passion. 

THURSDAY 

[DENY] — I  deny  that  the  sins  and  omissions 
of  my  ancestors  can  reflect  upon  me  in  any  way. 
Selfishness,  envy,  malice,  jealousy,  pride,  avarice, 
arrogance,  cruelty,  hyprocrisy,  obstinacy,  and  re- 
venge are  no  part  of  my  present  understanding,  and 
I  deny  all  such  beliefs  in  the  race,  in  those  with 
whom  I  associate,  and  in  my  own  mind. 

[AFFIRM] — I  am  at  peace  with  all  mankind. 
I  truly  and  unselfishly  love  all  men  and  women.  I 
now  acknowledge  the  perfect  law  of  justice  and 
equality.  I  know  that  "God  is  no  respecter  of 
persons,"  and  that  every  man  and  woman  is  my 
equal  in  the  sight  of  the  Father. 

I  do  love  my  neighbor  as  myself,  and  I  will  do 
unto  others  as  I  would  have  them  do  unto  me. 

FRIDAY 
[DENY] — I  deny  that  I  have  inherited  the  con- 


HOJV  Mental  Healing  Is  Done  255 

sequences  of  fear  from  my  ancestors,  or  that  the 
race  can  reflect  its  fears  upon  me.  The  fears  of 
those  with  whom  I  associate  can  no  longer  hold  me 
in  sickness  or  want,  and  my  own  understanding  is 
now  fully  rid  of  these  illusions. 

There  is  not  and  cannot  hereafter  be  any  fear 
in  or  about  my  bold  world. 

[AFFIRM] — I  am  brave  and  bold  with  the 
knowledge  that  I  am  Spirit,  and  therefore  not  sub- 
ject to  any  opposing  power. 

Plenty  and  prosperity  are  mine  by  inheritance 
from  God,  and  I  now,  by  my  steady,  persistent 
word,  bring  them  into  manifestation. 

SATURDAY 

[DENY] — I  deny  that  I  inherit  any  belief  that 
in  any  way  limits  me  in  health,  virtue,  intelligence, 
or  power  to  do  good. 

Those  with  whom  I  associate,  can  no  longer 
make  me  believe  that  I  am  a  "poor  worm  of  the 
dust."  The  race  belief  that  "nature  dominates  man" 
no  longer  holds  me  in  bondage,  and  I  am  now  free 
from  every  belief  that  might  in  any  way  interfere 
with  my  perfect  expression  of  health,  wealth,  peace, 
prosperity,  and  perfect  satisfaction  in  every  depart- 
ment of  life. 

I  now,  in  the  sight  and  presence  of  Almighty 
God,  unformulate  and  destroy  by  my  all-powerful 
word,  every  foolish  and  ignorant  assumption  that 
may  impede  my  march  to  perfection.  My  word  is 
the  measure  of  my  power.  I  have  spoken,  and  it 
shall  be  so. 

[AFFIRM] — I  am  unlimited  in  my  power,  and 


256  Talks  on  Truth 

have  increasing  health,  strength,  life,  love,  wisdom, 
boldness,  freedom,  charity,  and  meekness,  now  and 
forever. 

I  am  now  in  harmony  with  the  Father,  and 
stronger  than  any  mortal  law.  I  know  my  birth- 
right in  pure  Being,  and  boldly  assert  my  perfect 
freedom.  In  this  knowledge  I  am  enduring,  pure, 
peaceful,  and  happy. 

I  am  dignified  and  definite,  yet  meek  and  lowly, 
in  all  that  I  think  and  do. 

I  am  at-one  with  and  now  fully  manifest  vigor- 
ous life,  wisdom,  and  spiritual  understanding. 

I  am  one  with  and  now  fully  manifest  love, 
charity,  justice,  kindness,  and  generosity. 

I  am  one  with  and  now  fully  manifest  infinite 
goodness  and  mercy. 

Peace  floweth  like  a  river  through  my  mind,  and 
I  thank  thee,  O  God,  that  I  am  one  with  thee! 

SUNDAY 
"Be  still,  and  know  that  I  am  God." 


INDEX 

Absolute  Mind  Transmits  Thought — 62,  63. 
Adam  Is  To  Be  Transformed— 143,  144. 
Affirmations : 

Cleansing  and  Purifying — 57. 

Divine  Mind  Realizations — 18. 

Faith— 87,  88. 

I  AM  Realizations — 38. 

Judgment  and  Justice — 1 19. 

Love  Demonstrated — 129,  130. 

Perfect  Substance,  Establishing  The — 78. 

Perfection  In  Form  Established — 98. 

Power  of  Words— 66,  67. 

Right  Thinking — 47. 

Son  of  God  Realizations — 29. 

To  Quicken  Spirituality — 77. 

Will  and  Understanding,  Establishment  of — 108,  109. 
Affirmations  and  Denials,  Remedial  Effects  of — 1  15,  116. 
Attitude,  Mental,  Fixes  Our  Relation  to  Things — 83,  84. 
Authority,  External,  Keeps  Men  in  Bondage — 2 1 9,  220. 
Being,  Powers  of,  Guard— 169. 
Being,  Your,  Is  in  Heaven — 204. 
Benefactors,  False— 210,  211. 
Bible  Glossary  of  Antiquities  Quoted — 1  10. 
Bible  References  and  Quotations: 

Acts  2:17— 35;  2:31—  34. 

Col.  3:4—78. 

I  Cor.  13:13—130;  14:15—30;  15—169. 

II  Cor.  3:18—78;  10:5—47. 
Dan.  12:13—166. 

Eph.  6:14—119. 

Ex.  28:30— 110. 

Gal.  4:24—69. 

Gen.    1:27—78;  2:19—135;  6:5—93;  6:17—93; 

29,  30—68. 
Heb.  11:1.3—79. 
Isaiah  26:3  (margin)— 94. 


ii  INDEX 

Jer.  29:11—47. 

Job  13:18—119;  33:15—98;  33:15,  16—98. 

John    1—19;    1:11—217;    1:18—26;   3:13    (Roth- 

erham)— 192;  5:17—42;  5:39—219;  7:17—99; 
14:10—135,   136;   14:21  —  120. 
I  John  3:1  —  120;  4:7-21  —  128,  129;  4:16—120. 
Luke  1 3—242. 
Mark  1  : 1 6—206. 

Matt.  4:18—206;  5:48—78;   7:1.  2—110;  8:5-13 
57;    12:36—67;    13:17—29;    16:19—137;   21:23- 

46—24. 

I  Peter  3:10—67. 
Phil.  4:8—47. 

Prov.  4:24— 67;  12:5 — 47;  12:18—66;  13:3—66; 
14:3_67;      16:3 — 47;      16:24—67;      16:32—57; 

18:7;— 67;    18:21—66;   21:23—66;   24:9—47; 
29:18—96;  29:20—67. 
Psa.  25:9—119;  27:11  —  119;  34:12,   13—67;  39: 

1_67;    50:23—67;    101:1  —  119;    139:17—47; 

139:23—47. 
Rev.  3:21  — 135. 
Rom.  8:14,  17,26. 

II  Timothy  2:16,  17—67. 

Blasphemy   Against   Holy   Ghost   Explained — 221,    222, 

223. 

Bodily  Organs  and  Functions  Related  to  Ideas — 1  15. 
Body  Atom  a  Miniature  Planet — 153. 

Can  Be  Saved  From  Death — 234. 

Lord's    Body,    How    Brought    into    Appearance — 234, 
235. 

Of  God  Defined;  Responsiveness — 235. 

The  Deathless— 227. 

The  Instrument  of  Mind — 181. 

The  True— 181. 

Burdens,  No,  In  God's  Creative  Scheme — 209,  2 1 0. 
"By  What  Authority?"— 25. 
Centers  of  Consciousness: 

Body  Brain-Centers— 90. 

Body  Center,  Action  of  Will  On— 37. 

Consciousness,  Invisible  Center  of — 154. 


INDEX  ii 

Faculties — 70,  7 1 . 

Faith— 80. 

Heart;  Wisdom  in  Purity  Found  at — I  76,  I  77. 

Imagination;  Author  of  Faculties — 92,  93. 

Life;  Nature;  Treatment  Required — 45 

Love— 37,  120,  171,  180,  181. 

Reverence — 7 1 . 

Superconsciousness — 26,  28. 

Thought— 48,  91. 

Will  and  Understanding — 101. 
^  Word— 58. 
Changes  Immanent — 238. 
Christ,  The  Word— 126. 
Christianity  and  Science — 30,  3 1 . 

Is  a  Science — 42. 

So-Called,  a  Combination — 2 1  7. 
Church  of  Christ  a  State  of  Consciousness — 220,  22 1 . 

An  Organic  Principle — 225,  226. 

Awaits  Representative  Ministry — 225. 

Covers  All  of  Life— 226,  227. 

Is  Never  Organized — 224. 
Concept  and  Manifestation — 32. 
Condemnation  to  be  Avoided — 86,  87. 
Creations,  Apparent;  How  Produced — 187,  188. 

Of  God's  Word  Enduring— 59. 

Two,  Explained — 232. 
Death  and  Sleep  Compared — 165,    166,    167. 

Has  No  Foundation  in  Itself — 159,  160. 

How  Explained —  1 63. 

Origin;  How  to  be  Vanquished — 164. 
Denials  and  Affirmations  Both  Necessary — 54. 
Desire  and  I  AM— 197,  198,  202. 

Opens  All  Doors — 195. 

"Devil,"  The,  Defined;  How  Overcome— 107. 
Disciple  Acts  on  Inspiration — 244. 

Disciples  of  Jesus  Christ;   Estate  and   Experience — 217. 
Disease  Germs,  Origin  of — 138,  139. 

Not  Natural— 235. 
Disobedience  Defined — 212. 
Divine  Idea  of  Pe*^ction  Heals — 236. 


iv  INDEX 

Ideas  Man's  Inheritance — 14. 

Law,  Departure  From,  Brings  Death — 165. 

Mind  as  Life,  Substance,  Intelligence — 43. 

Will,  Bring  to  Bear— 103. 
Dreams;  Origin  and  Value — 94,  95,  96. 
Eden,  Promised  Restoration  of — 237,  238. 
Ego,  There  is  But  One — 156. 
Evil  Transformed  by  Thought— 174,  175. 
Existence,  Man's,  Object  of — 52,  53. 
Expression  is  From  Abstract  to  Concrete — 37. 
Faculty,  Imaging,  Produces  Forms — 91,  92. 
Faith  Brings  Realization — 63. 

Is  Related  to  Substance — 80. 

Necessary  in  Demonstrating  Higher  Law — 84. 

Results  of— 79,  80,  81. 

Righteousness  of — 84. 

Should  be  Developed— 79,  80. 
Farrar,    Archdeacon,    Quoted   on    Meaning   of    "Hell* 

114. 

Father,  The,  Abides  in  Spiritual  Realms — 12. 
Flesh,  The,  Nature  of— 196. 
Forgiveness  of  Sin,  Effects  of — 55. 
God  and  Man,  Relation  Between— 33,  207,  208. 

Defined;  Variously  Named— 12,  17.  19. 

Does  Not  Change  His  Mind — 19. 

Does  Not  Dictate  Man's  Choice — 163. 

Inspiration  of  Universe — 10. 

Is— 214. 

Is,  a  Mind  Principle — 85. 

Origin  of  All— 188. 

Our  Fount  of  Wisdom— 90.  91. 

Supreme  Knowing — 103. 

The  All-Potential  Mind — 232. 

The  Father-Mother— 214. 
God-Mind,  Key  to— 20. 
God's  Nearness — 16. 
Good  and  Bad,  Perplexing  Question  of — 159. 

The,  Calling  Forth— 223. 

Goodness  and  Joy  in  Union  With  Perfect  Mind — 15. 
Guidance,  Our.  Sure — 105,  106. 


INDEX  v 

Healing,  How  Done— 247,  248. 

Systems,  What,  to  be  Avoided— 104,  105. 

Through  Seeing  Perfection — 208,  209. 
Health,  Study  of,  Leads  to  Mental  Harmony — 158. 
Heaven;  What  and  Where  It  Is— 151,  152. 
Higher  Consciousness,   Every  one  an  Heir  to — 46. 
Holy  Ghost  Baptism,  How  Gained — 190,  191. 
"I"— 23. 
I  AM  and  Desire— 197,  198,  202. 

And  /  Will— 149. 

Center  of  Man's  System — 101. 

Definition,  Nature,  Work— 192,  193,   194,   195,   199, 
200. 

Illustrated  and  Explained— 150,   151. 

Perfect  Mind-Body  Expresses  Through — 233,  234. 

Spiritual  Man — 33. 

The,  of  Jesus— 146. 

Work  of— 146,  147,  199. 

Work  of  In  Denial— 199. 
Idea  Born  of  Wisdom  Irresistible — 148. 

Creative,  in  Word — 62. 

Projects  Form — 34. 
Ideas  Key  to  Life  Problem — 14. 

Their  Swing — 148. 

World  of,  a  Storehouse— 245. 
Identity  Never  Lost— 200. 
Imagination;  Its  Highest,  Best  Work — 98. 

Power  of— 96,  97. 
Intellect,  Character-Giving  Mechanism — 143. 

Executive  Officer  of  Wisdom — 1  77. 

Wisdom  Not  an  Attribute  of— 142,  143. 
/  Willed  I  AM— 149. 
/  Will,  Manifest  Man— 33. 
Jealousy;  Nature,  Effect,  Cure — 116,   117. 
Jesus  Christ  a  Parable— 70. 

Doctrine,  Nature,  Mission — 184,    185. 

Redemption;  How  Gained — 231,  232. 

Still  the  Head  of  His  Church— 218,  219. 
Jesus  Christ's  Teaching  Concerning  Love — 124,  125. 
Jesus,  I  AM  Affirmations  of — 145,  146. 


vi  INDEX 

Jesus'  Lament  Over  Jerusalem — 1  70. 

Jesus  Merged  Personal  Into  Universal — 27. 

Methods  of— 207. 

Of  Nazareth  the  Seed-Man— 239. 

Secret  of  His  Character — 189. 
Jesus*   Source   of   Power   over    Death — 161.    162.    163, 

165.  166. 

Judge,  The  One  Supreme,  Adjusts  Inequalities — 1  16. 
Judging  From  Mortal  Plane  Leads  to  Condemnation — 1  12. 
Judgment  Day,  Meaning  of — 1  13. 

How  Developed — 1  12. 

Kingdom  of  God  Within  You,  Literally— 154. 
"Kingdom  of  Heaven."  Illustrated— 242.  243. 
Kingdom  of  Heaven.  The.  Is  All  About  Us— 244. 

Of  Jesus  Christ  Ready;  Requirements — 241. 

The,  How  Regained— 156. 

The.  Within.  Nature  of— 155. 
Knowledge  Through  Study  of  Mind — 137. 
Law  of  Unfoldment;  Its  Nature — 145. 
Life  an  Expression  of  Being — 160. 

In  the  Body;  How  Governed — 161. 

Is  a  Principle— 160. 

Law  of.  Based  on  Mind  Action— 167.  168. 
"Life,  Liberty  and  the  Pursuit  of  Happiness" — 151. 
Living,  The  Reality  of — 2 1 4. 
Logic  of  Mind,  Student  Must  Trust — 10.   I  I. 
Logos  Defined — 19. 
Lord.  The.  Establishes  Order— 145. 
Love,  a  Divine  Principle ;  How  Known —  1  70. 

A  Magnet— 1  75.  1  79. 

And  Power  to  be  Associated — 1  77. 

Action  of— 174. 

Center,  to  Develop — 181.  182. 

Defined— 174,  182. 

Divine  and  Human,  Distinguished — 127. 

Divine  Power  of — 127. 

Drummond  Quoted — 123. 

God's  For  His  Children— 182. 

Idea  of  Universal  Unity — 120. 

In  the  Regeneration — 12 1 . 


INDEX  v,i 

Invocation — 183. 

More  Than  Affection — 124. 

Of  God  Must  be  Felt— 170. 

Of  Money— 125. 

Power  of— 122,  176,  177,  178. 

Power  of  the  Word— 126. 

Teachings  of  Jesus  Christ  Concerning — 124. 

Work  of  Developing— 122. 
Loyalty  to  Spirit  Necessary — 201. 
Man  an  Emanation  of  His  Maker — 27 

An  Epitome  of  Being — 41. 

An  Inlet  and  Outlet — 23. 

And  God,   Relation  Between,    Illustrated — 207,   208. 

But  One— 32. 

By  Nature  an  Organizer — 220. 

Does  Not  Possess  Anything — 208. 

How,   Becomes  Master — 93,  94. 

In  God-Mind  as  Perfect  Idea — 23. 

Is— 214. 

Is  Mind— 14. 

Is  the  Builder— 205,  206. 

Manifests  That  Which  Exists — 99. 

The  Highest  Expression  of  God — 161. 

The  Image  of  God-Mind— 91. 

The  Imaging  Faculty — 188. 

Thinks  His  Body  Into  Disease— 43,  44. 

What  Is— 192. 

Man- Idea,  Perfect,  Has  Many  Names — 23. 
Man's  Return  to  the  Within— 35,  36,  37. 
Man's  True  Identity— 36,  37. 
Meditation  Lights  Up  Inner  Mind — 80. 
Mental  Confusion,  Remedy  For — 1  1. 

Laws,  Knowledge  of — 13. 

Processes  Are  Generative— 139,  140,  141,  142. 

Ships  Must  be  Ballasted— 149. 
Messiahship,  The  Real— 137. 
Mind  Ability  Not  Limited— 89. 

Activities,  Twelve  Fundamental — 248. 

And  Ideas— 1  7. 

And  Spirit  Synonymous — 1  3. 


riii  INDEX 

Defined— 189. 

Is;  It  Produce*— 153. 

Of  God  and  Mind  of  Man  Compared — 22. 

Of  Man  Likened  to  a  Clear  Stream — 220. 

Of  Spirit  Knows  in  Man — 189. 

Science  of,  Solves  Mysteries  of  Universe — 13. 

The  Only  Creative  Power — 59. 

Mind-Body,  Perfect,  Expresses  Through  I  AM— 233.  234. 
Mind's  Three  Phases — 89,  90. 
Mission,  Your,  To  Express  God — 215. 
Miracles  Explained — 226. 
Molecule,  The,  Characteristics  of — 48. 
Mysteries,  Religious,  Cleared — 22. 
Naming  Faculty,  Exercise  of — 144,  145. 
New  Jerusalem.  Keys  to— 239. 
Obedience ;  How  Learned — 2 1  1 . 

Spiritual  Body  Built  Through — 2 1  3. 

The  Way  of  Attainment — 228. 

Whence  It  Comes— 209. 
Occult.  The,  Is  the  Unexplored— 89. 
One  Mind,  Foundation  of  Investigations — 15. 
Organism,  Must  be  Reconstructed — 223,  224. 
Paradise,  Teachings  Concerning — 230. 
Perfect  Idea  Is  the  True  Self— 24. 
Physical  Science  and  Metaphysics  Compared — 64. 
Power  a  Faculty  In  Mind— 1  76. 
Power  and  Love  to  Be  Associated — 1  77. 
Practical  Christianity  Defined — 15. 
Praise,  Increase  Through — 74. 
Prayer,  Law  of — 76. 

Nature,  and  Action— 72,  73. 

Persist  In — 76. 

Primal  Substance  and  Consciousness — 196. 
Principle,  Intelligent,  Key  to  Metaphysician's  Work — 48. 
Principles  Do  Not  Change — 137,  138. 
Processes  Work  According  to  Principle — 186. 
Prophecies  Pointing  to  the  Higher  Man — 27. 
"Raise  the  Dead"— 158. 
Raising  the  Dead;  Factors  Involved — 164. 
Relationships.  Earthly,  Nature  of — 198. 


INDEX 

Repentance  a  Form  of  Denial — 55. 
Restoration,  Promises  of — 230. 
Resurrection,  The,  Begins  In  Our  Minds — 34. 
Road,  Royal,  For  Every  Man— 145,   146. 
Sample  Treatments— 248-25 1 . 

Colds,  Grippe  and  Influenzas — 249. 

Fear,  Anxiety,  Worry,  Dread,  Suspense — 248. 

Indigestion,  Dyspepsia,  Stomach  Troubles — 249. 

Kidney,  Bladder,  Urinal  Disorders— 250. 

Liver  Troubles,  All— 250. 

N  ervo  usness — 2  49 . 
^  Throat  Affections,  All— 25 1 . 
Savior,  The,  of  Personal  Consciousness — 56. 
Science  Denned — 30. 

Science  of  Spirit  The  Only  Real  Science— 9. 
Second  Birth,  The,  Denned;  Explained — 26,  27. 
"Secret  Place;"  Where  Found — 190. 
Self-Consciousness  Like  an  Eddy  in  Ocean — 100. 
Sermon  On  The  Mount,  Applying— 202,  203,  204. 
Sin,  Forgiveness  of;  Effects — 55. 
Six  Days'  Creation,  The — 32. 
Six  Days'  Treatment — 251-256. 

Friday— 254. 

Invocation  To  Precede  Treatment — 255. 

Monday— 252. 

Saturday — 255 

Thursday— 254. 

Tuesday— 253. 

Wednesday— 253. 
Son  of  God— 191. 
Spirit,  Inspiration  of;  How  Attained — 9,   10. 

Of  Justice,  Leave  All  To— 1  18. 

The  Gate  To— 211. 

The  One  Leader— 225. 

You  Are— 206. 
Spiritual  Body  Built  Through  Obedience — 2 1  3. 

Body,  Nature  of,  Illustrated— 2 1 3,  214. 

Physiology — 28. 

Thinking  Followed  By  Spiritual  Acting — 202. 
Spirituality  Draws  Ideas  From  Universal  Mind — 73. 


INDEX 

Spirituality;  Importance  and  Development — 72. 
Statements  To  Be  Avoided — 105. 
States,  All.  Are  Mental— 189. 
States  of  Consciousness,  Two— 194,  200.  201. 
Success  Depends  Upon  Good  Judgment — 117. 
Superconscious  Mind  Contacts  God — 26. 
Superconsciousness,  Only  Sure  Guide — 1  1,  12. 
Supreme  Mind  Heals— 247. 
Symbology  of  Biblical  Terms: 

Adam  and  Eve — 104. 

Adam  Listening  To  The  Serpent — 34,  35. 

Adam;  Place;  Definition;  Work— 136. 

Bible,  The,  An  Allegory— 33. 

Bible,  The.  Exposition  of  Mental  Laws— 68.  69. 

Creation— 135.   136. 

"Days"  of.  Genesis — 25 1 . 

Disciples  of  Jesus — 171. 

Eden— 66.  155. 

Egyptians  and  Israelites — 137,   138. 

Ephraim  and  Manasseh — 101. 

Garden  of  Eden— 34,  37.  53.  54. 

Hell;  Meaning  of— 113.  114. 

I  AM— 101. 

Jesus  Christ— 56,  69.  70. 

John— 122.  186.  187. 

Judas— 55,  56. 

Law  Given  By  Moses— 1  10,   111. 

Matthew— 107. 

Moses— 145.  146,  198.  212. 

"Mount.  The" — 93. 

New  Jerusalem— 227.  243. 

New  Testament — 28. 

Peter— 80,  84.  85.  136.  137. 

Regeneration — 38. 

Simon  and  Andrew — 206. 

Simon  Peter— 69. 

Son  of  God— 63. 

Sons  of  Jacob— 68,  69.   70.  71.  94.  95,    120.   121 

Thomas— 107,  108. 

Word.  The— 58.  186. 


INDEX  xi 

Teaching,  Metaphysical,  Concerning  Creation — 41. 
"Temple  of  God,"  An  Architectural  Truth — 221. 
Things,  All.  To  Be  Made  New— 240. 
Thinking,  A  Process  In  Mind — 205. 

Factors  of — 139. 

Power  of— 1  73. 

When  Effective  For  Good— 1  72,  1  73. 
Thought  Action — 61,  62. 

Action,  Compared — 44. 

Builds  the  Body— 39. 

Can  Transform  Evil — 1  74,  1  75. 

Counterfeit  Comes  From  Intellect — 142. 

Error,  Corrupts  Love — 1  73. 

How,  Works— 59,  60. 

Is  the  Creative  Power — 42,  43. 

Makes  Conditions — 86. 

Moves  the  Body— 39. 

Unity— 24,  25. 
Trinity — The,  Explained — 2 1 . 
Truth  Must  Be  Individually  Experienced — I  7. 
Understanding  and  Will  In  Self-Control — 106. 
Understanding  and  Will,  Source  of— 99,  1 00. 
Understanding  Comprehends — 103. 
We  Have  Separated  Ourselves  From  Father-Mind — 16. 
"What  Am  I  ?"     Answered— 20,  2 1 . 
Willfulness,  How  Overcome— 102,  103,  104. 
Will  and  Understanding,  Source  of— 99,  100. 
Will,  Man  Has  Freedom  of— 100. 
Will,  The,  To  Be  Instructed— 1 0 1 ,  102. 
Wisdom;  How  Attained — 144. 
Wisdom  Not  An  Attribute  of  Intellect — 142. 
Word  of  God  Denned— 186,  191. 

of  God;  Its  Work— 184,  187. 

of  God;  The,  Character,  Office — 184. 

Spoken,  Power  of— 64,  65. 

The,  Effects  of— 65,  66. 

The,  Nature  of— 126. 

The  Synonyms  and  Office — 58. 
Words,  I  AM  Formulates— 199. 
"Yes"  and  "No;"  Character  and  Use— 49,  50,  51,  52. 


5^ 


A     000027329     2 


